The Sweet Far Thing
by RenkonNairu
Summary: Sequel to my one-shot "Mizuko Jizou". Emo-angst, hurt/comfort, family. Only read if you want to be severely depressed. NOW W/ PLOT! ...Sort of.
1. Melancholia

Disclaimer: All characters and related settings are the property of SNK and Neo Geo, I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

(A/N: This is supposed to be a sequel to my one-shot "Mizuko Jizo". I would recommend that you do read that one first. Its just 5000+ words, really short. This story on the other hand is gonna be pretty long.)

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter One: Melancholia

It took Andy a moment or two after waking to remember why he was waking up alone instead of with Mai's warm and soft body pressed against his. It had been a few months since his promise in front of the Jizou statues to not leave her to train, to stay and train at the Shiranui dojo, close to her. He had accepted her request to move back into his old room, the one he occupied while still training under her grandfather. He understood her desire for abstinence. What he didn't understand was how, after several months he could still wake up and expect to see her there.

He had found it remarkably easy to fall back into the old training habits he had formed under Hanzo-sensei. But he was surprised at how difficult it was for him to adjust to living with Mai again and not being welcomed back into her bed. It was such a base and low-minded thing to be upset about, being denied sex. Andy was almost disgusted with himself for being upset over such an iniquitous desire. Mai was better than that, she was more than just that to him and after the way that he had treated her, the way he had neglected her, she deserved more.

But they were going on their third month of living together but separate. Fall had already faded into Winter and the dry spell was starting to grate on Andy's nerves.

He didn't just miss the sex, he missed just being with her, waking up next to her. Especially waking up next to her now that Winter had set in and the mornings were cold and unforgiving. He had never been cold while sleeping with Mai, sleeping alone he dreaded having to crawl out from under the blankets.

Gritting his teeth and reminding himself that he was to old to be whining about getting up in the mornings, Andy rolled off his futon and padded over to his closet. He pulled on his normal white tunic and pants that he preferred to train in with a black thermal under-suit for warmth. He then grabbed his pair of skates, the Short Track seemed to have completely replaced Andy's normal morning calisthenics.

Andy paused as he was passing the master bedroom –Mai's room. He held still, straining his ears to hear the even sound of her breathing, hoping that she would call out to him, or mutter his name in her sleep. He hoped for any indication that this drought might end and she would welcome him back to her. But aside from her soft breaths from behind the paper screen all was silent, he gave up and continued on his way.

Up in the mountains behind the Shiranui dojo there was a pond fed by a small stream, an offshoot from the larger river that cut through the valley. It wasn't particularly deep and so froze completely over in the wintertime. This fact, combined with its almost complete seclusion and its proximity to the Shiranui dojo made it Andy's favorite place to skate.

The Short Track was probably the only non-martial arts related sport he liked, but he preferred to skate out and away from people. It was more of a meditative exercise for him than a physical one. It was a way for him to organize his thoughts, whenever his standard meditations failed or his thoughts were to sporadic, his emotions to much of a roiling tumult to allow him to enter into the meditation trance he would come here to the pond and skate around the short track until he could once again make sense of himself.

…Or in this case, sense of Mai.

'_Just be with me…'_ She had said. '_Just stay with me… don't go away.'_

Well, he had stayed, he hadn't left to train at the Yamada dojo with Jubei-sensei or gone to Thailand with Joe, or back to South Town to see his brother, or even up into the mountains to train on his own. No, as she requested he had stayed here with her, _for_ her. His training had suffered for it but he reminded himself that she had suffered in silence for three whole years, he shouldn't mind a few months.

Just a few months…

A few months practicing a sub-par training regiment he could handle, a few months living in the same house with Mai, with her lusciously sensual body and sultry voice but not being allowed to touch so exquisite a body, kiss so lovely a mouth, _that_ he was finding slightly more difficult to manage. More difficult, in fact, than he would have liked to admit. He understood why she had instated this rule of abstinence; he was just becoming annoyed with its prolongment.

Andy scatted to a stop. For weeks he'd been coming here to think because his standard meditations had failed and for weeks he still hadn't been able to come up with a solution for his problem, for _their_ problem.

'_Just be with me.'_ She had said, yet now that they were back to living in the same house Mai had become like a ghost to him. He rarely ever actually saw her, only signs that she had been there. A half empty pot of tea that she had left out on a hot-plate for him, the kitchen sink that had been empty would hold a used dish or two, soft footsteps in the halls, the sliding open and shut of the paper screens.

'_Just stay with me.' _She had said, yet she had been avoiding him since he had moved back in. He understood that she mostly blamed him for not being there when she needed him and he understood that she was still very depressed over the whole thing, but it's been months already and Mai didn't seem any better than she did the day he had made his promise to her in front of the Jizou statues.

The Mizuko Jizou…

Andy felt another wave of guilt wash over him. Every time he thought about those two tiny statues and what they represented he couldn't help but loath himself, for not being there, for not recognizing her cries for help sooner. She had tried to tell him in her own cryptic and impertinent way. But he had just been too dense.

But then again, how was he supposed to know that the illusions of children Mai would torment him with before their fights in the King of Fighters tournaments were her way of telling him that he'd fathered a child? No one else had ever suspected. Did she think that just because they slept together they had some sort of psychic link and he could read her mind? That sounded like something out of a bad fan fiction.

Andy sighed in exasperation as he began his march back down the slope. Then again, maybe Mai hadn't really been trying to tell him anything with those illusions, maybe she had just been trying to punish him for neglecting her like he had and not being there for her when she needed him. Because he hadn't been there, because he still hadn't been willing to be a husband, Mai had decided that he wouldn't want to be a father either. In fact, she probably thought a child might scare him away from her entirely. So she had aborted it.

Not once, but twice Mai had found herself with child and he hadn't been around to support her, to help her. And not once, but twice she had chosen him, her negligent deadbeat of a lover over her child, a child she actually wanted. And that was what made Andy feel so guilty, whenever he thought about the two tiny statues just off the trail behind the dojo. Statues of Jizou Bodhisattva, Mizuko Jizou, the guardian of dead children… _his_ dead children.

He paused on the trail and gazed down the path that led to the statues' resting place. Should he visit? He hadn't planned on paying his respects to them this morning; he hadn't brought any inscents or other offerings with him but still…

His feet seemed to make the decision for him, taking him down the path just a few feet before it dead-ended at two small stone statues that were no taller than his knees. Andy stood there for long moments, wondering what to do, if he should say anything. Could the dead even hear him?

Mai talked to them sometimes. He never actually saw her, she would leave when she heard him coming up the path, but he would hear her speaking to the statues, telling them what life would have been like had they been born, what techniques she would have taught them, places she would have taken them, just things they would have done together. Sometimes Andy heard himself mentioned but usually it was just Mai and her children. He understood her desire to exclude him, he was almost never there anyway, but it still hurt.

He used to be her whole world, now… Now he didn't know what he was to her.

'_Just be with me… Just stay with me… don't go away.'_

He wasn't. He wasn't going anywhere. He hadn't left since he made her that promise and he wasn't about to any time soon. And yet, she was distancing herself from him more and more each day. What was the point of his being here if she never even spoke to him?

"What does she want from me?" He asked aloud.

The statues gave no answer. They were stone and, in fact, could not speak. Andy stood there anyway, waiting. Expecting an answer in the form of a soft breeze, the shift of snow in the trees, a glimpse of some family of animals that lived in the mountains, anything that might give him the illusion of an answer.

Finally, he gave up when his feet grew cold. Andy cleared away some of the snow around the Jizou before heading back down the trail to the Shiranui dojo. Maybe if he was lucky he could walk in just in time to see Mai retreating after her breakfast.

…

It seemed every day it became harder and harder to drag herself out of bed. She would waken, her mind would be alert and ready to face the day, yet Mai just wouldn't get up. It felt like too much effort to roll off her futon and stand-up, to much effort to put on a robe (she didn't have to dress fully), to much effort to do anything.

She would lie awake in the mornings, silently scolding herself for being such a lazy-bones. She would make deals with herself, '_Alright, in another hour I'm gonna get up and start my day.'_ And she would always break them, '_Fine, in _another_ hour I'll get up.' _

It seemed nothing would dispel the cloud of depression that had settled over her. Not just her, it had settled over the entire Shiranui dojo. Andy had become 'laxed in his training, she'd never seen him go through his routines so hap-hazardly as he did now, like he didn't even care about furthering his art anymore. He didn't even follow his usual routine anymore.

Before, Andy would rise early and either do some calisthenics for a wile before breakfast or else jog a mile or two up in the mountains. But he did neither of those things anymore, now his morning routine was to go up to that little pond of his that he thought was so secret and just skate around. He could lie to himself and say he was practicing his Short Track but she knew him and she knew that he really only ever went up there when he was bothered by something that his standard meditations couldn't explain.

He was probably becoming frustrated, with his situation and with her. She had asked him to stay and he had promised he would, but his training was suffering for it. At this rate he would never be able to challenge his brother and that fact was probably driving him insane. But at the same time, he'd made a promise to her and was doing his best to keep it; he was torn between his obligation and his passion, both of which were equally important to him.

She should talk to him, show him that his sacrifice was appreciated, that she understood what he was giving up to be with her but she couldn't. She was so self-conscious around him now that she was nervous to just be in the same room with him. He must think she was horrible; he probably hated her now.

She heard the door to his room slid open. Even from down the hall she could hear his soft, stealthy steps in the silence of the winter morning. He paused outside her door, for what reason she didn't know. She thought for a moment he was going to barge in and demand that she talk to him, demand an explanation for her reclusive behavior after she had practically begged him to stay here to be with her. Mai pushed that thought aside and kept her breathing steady. Maybe if he thought she was still asleep he'd go away.

That seemed to be exactly what happened because Andy's padded steps soon continued down the hall to the entranceway where, after the sound of the door sliding open and shut again, all sound of him disappeared. Mai sighed in exasperation. What was she going to do with herself?

She couldn't keep avoiding Andy like she was but she didn't know what she would say to him. _'Thank you for staying, but now your presence here makes me sad._'? She couldn't say that aside from the fact that it wasn't entirely true, that would just destroy him. He had given up training to surpass his brother to be with her because she had asked. If she turned around and told him that he was just making her worse… she didn't know what he would do.

Besides, Andy wasn't the cause of her depression, not the real cause anyway. The source of her depression was her own damn guilt and loathing she felt for herself. It took the both of them to conceive a child yet it was she that had chosen to abort it, both times it had been her alone and Andy had never known. It was she that had asked Andy to stay with her instead of going away to train and now it was she that was making him suffer for her selfishness and her cowardice.

Mai rolled over on her futon and buried her face in her pillow.

"What a wretched woman I am!" She sobbed, her pillow muffling the sound.

Life hadn't always been this wrong. She remembered being happy once. So many years ago, back before Andy had first returned to South Town, back when he was still training to avenge his father's murder, back when they were still just kids. He had been her sparring partner, her schoolmate and her first real love. Now… they were like strangers to each other and it was all her doing, all her fault.

She cried into her pillow a bit more, cried until all her tears were gone, then she pushed herself up into a sitting position. The living still had to go on living 'all the appointed days', or so it said somewhere, in some book she had never read. She had to remind herself of this every morning, it seemed. She found she couldn't face the world if she didn't. She was still the master of the Shiranui dojo and while the school didn't have any students she was still responsible for the up-keep of the property.

Mai went to the bathroom to take care of her morning necessities; she tried to avoid making eye contact with her own reflection as she washed her hands. She didn't need to see her own hopelessness reflected back at her, her cheeks, a bright red from crying were enough. A hot shower drove the morning chill from her body but it couldn't penetrate down to the wellspring of her sorrow to wash away her pain, she was beginning to think that nothing could.

After the shower she wrapped herself in a heavy robe, she didn't feel like donning a full kimono and modern clothes made her feel like she was going out somewhere. The kitchen was empty when she entered, clean and scrubbed, as it had been the night before when she had gone to bed, showing no sign that Andy had been there. Of course, he hadn't been; the blond ninja preferred to do a light workout before breakfast, in the past he would either do some calisthenics or take a light jog, now it seemed he practiced the Short Track.

Mai set some water on the stove to boil for tea and measured some rice into the rice cooker, enough for two people. She hadn't had much of an appetite lately and didn't feel much like eating but she also didn't want to let this depression to make her waste away and so she forced herself to eat anyway. She was especially _not_ going to let herself become one of those damn tragic heroines that die of a broken hearts! Such a thing would be ill fitting a Shiranui ninja and her grandfather would never allow King Ennma to send her to heaven because of it.

She sat at the kitchen table, listening to the clock over the stove tick the time away, the only sound in the whole room. So quiet was it that she jumped when the kettle whistled, causing her to pull out her fan and assume a defensive stance. She had become far too sensitive recently.

A pillar of steam was sent billowing up into the air as Mai poured the water into the teapot. She watched it turn from crystal clear to a light green before settling on brown. She placed the lid over it to seal in the heat and reclaimed her seat at the table. It seemed the simplest tasks had become so dramatic for her, like she was living in one of those daytime melodramas and just couldn't stop over-acting.

Mai heard the soft crunch of snow under foot just outside the kitchen door as she was finishing the bowl of rice she had determined to eat and knew that Andy was back. Not wanting to see him she left dish, food still in it at the table and left, pausing only to make sure that the tea was still hot for him before fleeing entirely.

He must have heard her steps because no sooner had she left the kitchen then his baritone voice called her name.

"Mai..?"

She didn't bother to respond, she didn't want to talk to him. She had nothing to say and too much to say. She couldn't face him anymore.

…

It was at this time that a rumor had spread through the province. Sightings of a creature up in the mountains that behaved like a monkey yet looked like a man. The figure was said to be one hundred and fifty-four centimeters tall, roughly five foot one and stayed close to the hot springs in the mountains. It often chased hikers and other visitors from the steaming springs and was reported to often be in the company of other monkeys.

Hikers, hunters, tourists and even the rangers were advised to be watchful of this creature while the authorities sought a more permanent solution.

…


	2. Abatement

Disclaimer: King of Fighters is the property of SNK. I'm just borrowing a few characters for some non-profit entertainment.

A/N: New chapter of my annoying emo-angst story, now with actual plot! (Sort of.) To my regular readers I just want you to know that I have not forgotten Sore ga Ai, Deshou? I'm just taking a break from it until I can get over this little depression I'm going through. Please bear with me.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Two: Abatement

Andy touched the porcelain handle of Mai's teacup as if by doing so he could touch her hand. So close, he had been so close if only he were just a little faster. She had been here, she had been right _here_! He had heard her leave, she had been right before his grasp and she had slipped through his fingers before he had even know he held her, for the thousandth time. Why must fate tease him like this?

She hadn't finished her rice; maybe he could use that as a pretext to get her to see him. Sometimes it felt like everything would be better if she would just let him see her, she didn't even have to talk if she didn't want to, just let him know that she was still alive, that she was still real and not some dream of his.

She had loved him once, so ardently and fiercely that he doubted that it was real. Now that love of hers was gone and he was left feeling empty and broken inside. He wanted to hold her, to offer her some words of comfort or affection even though he was skilled at neither. All he wanted to do was seek her out and beg her to talk to him again.

He was still debating whether or not he should when he heard something shatter in another part of the house.

"Mai!" He breathed before dashing out, off to see what had happened.

…

Mai didn't feel much like working on the grounds outside today and so she had opted to clean some of the rarely used rooms within the house, one of which contained a collection of porcelain animals, the twelve animals of the zodiac to be precise. She cleaned them each in the order of the years, starting with her own (year of the Ox) and working her way around, taking each animal down from its shelf and gently wiping it down with a damp rag.

It was as she was doing this to the monkey that the figure, moist from the cloth, slipped from her grasp and shattered on the floor. She immediately bent down to pick up the pieces and cut her finger on one of the porcelain shards.

She didn't know why, it was just a stupid scratch but for some reason her eyes just welled up and she began to cry for the second time that morning. Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid. She was just being stupid getting all emotional about a silly little cut. She'd had worse; she'd had much worse. She was a fucking ninja and a regular competitor in the King of Fighters tournaments; she had had much, _much_ worse injuries than this.

As if to add insult to her injury, Andy appeared the very next second and rushed to her side. "I heard something crash! Are you okay?"

She looked up at him, unable to stop her tears yet wishing for a way to hide them from him. She still didn't want to talk to him, didn't really want to see him but some explanation was necessary or else he wouldn't leave her alone.

"I cut myself." It came out as a bit of a sob.

"Let me see." Andy bent down on one knee and took her hand in his, examining the wound. It was a small cut, just a bit bigger than a cat scratch with a bead of red blood welling from it. He brought the finger to his lips and sucked the blood away in a gentle kiss. "Its just a scratch you'll be fine."

"I know that!" Mai yanked her hand back. His tender gesture made her feel uncomfortable; the old Andy Bogard wasn't so free with his affections.

"I never said you didn't." He looked hurt by the venom in her words.

She should talk to him; this was the perfect opportunity. She should tell him that she appreciated his staying with her and that she knew his training was suffering and that she appreciated his sacrifice. But she didn't, instead she asked, "Why are you here?"

"I worry about you." He replied soberly. "I haven't seen you in a while." '_A very long while.'_

Another pang of guilt rumbled through her. She had made him promise, she had made him stay and then she had ignored him, she had shut him out. And yet he still cared enough about her to worry. What a wicked woman she was.

"Sorry." She replied meekly, her eyes downcast. She wanted to say more, was about to say more when the there was a knock at the front door. Mai stood to answer it but Andy held her back.

"I'll get it." He said. "You go put some anti-septic on that cut."

"I thought it was just a scratch." She played at being defiant but it was just an act, she didn't have the energy to be truly defiant this morning and besides, she didn't really feel like talking to whoever was at the door anyway.

"And I'm just a blond." Was Andy's retort.

"Hmph!" She pushed passed him and on into the bathroom to rummage through the medicine cabinet.

The town's sheriff was waiting on the front porch with two other men, one bearing the insignia of Wildlife, Fish and Gaming while the other looked to be a city official. The sheriff greeted Andy with a warm and friendly expression, he had been born and raised in the small town of Mino and had attended high school along side Andy and Mai. The WFG ranger, likewise knew Andy from his long jogs up in the mountains when the whether was warmer.

"Bogard-kun." He said.

"Nakamura-kun, Kino-san." The blond ninja responded, greeting the officer first and ranger second. "What can I do for you, gentlemen?"

"We wish to speak with Shiranui-san." The city official said.

"Mai-san has been feeling a little under the weather lately." Andy said, careful to add the honorific onto her name. "But if you'd like to come in for some tea I can see if she's up to seeing you today."

"We would be very grateful if you could." The official replied.

Andy led them into a sitting room before dashing back to the kitchen for the promised tea. The pot that Mai had made earlier that morning had been sitting on the hotplate and was still warm, Andy added an extra teabag and some more hot water from the kettle before serving it to the trio. He then dashed off to fine Mai and see if she was up for visitors.

She wasn't.

Andy returned a few minuets latter and sat down politely on his knees across from the trio.

"I'm sorry, but Mai-san is unable to see you at present." He informed them with a bit of a forlorn sigh. "Was there anything that I could help you with?"

"I suppose…" The city official grumbled, apparently none to happy about being denied an audience by a woman and having to deal with her house pet of a foreigner instead. "I assume you've heard about this mysterious Monkey-man that has been terrorizing the mountain hot springs this past winter, yes?"

"I think Kino-san mentioned something the last time I was up there, yes." Andy replied coolly, forming a strong dislike for this person.

"Well, we were hoping to enlist Shiranui-san's help in dispatching the problem." The man continued. "But since she is otherwise unavailable I suppose we can ask you. You are trained in tracking as well and the Shiranui's arts, I trust."

"I'm trained." Andy confirmed. _'Are you kidding? I've beaten her a billion times while she screams my name.' _

"Excellent!" The official stood. "I wish you to begin cooperating with Kino-san at once."

"Hold it! What about compensation for services rendered?" Well off, though it was, the Shiranui dojo didn't pay for its own up-keep and expenses.

The city official sat back down and he and Andy began negotiating a price settlement.

…

Mai leaned against the frame of Andy's bedroom door and watched him gear up. He really was a beautiful man. From his mane of long golden hair to the curve of his shoulder blades, the lines of his back, his narrow but powerful hips, his strong thighs, _Hell _even his kneecaps were hot! She sighed when he pulled a white tunic over his head, obscuring the view of his backside.

He had dressed completely in white for better camouflage in the snow. Gone was his bright red sash or his black under suit; between his naturally pale complexion, fair hair and immaculate white clothing he looked otherworldly, ethereal. She missed not being able to touch so exotic a body, but she knew the moment she did she would be consumed by the fire of her own lust and just end up right back where she had been back in '99 and '01. She didn't need that.

"Ya know, peeping toms aren't supposed to be so obvious about it and ninja are supposed to be covert." He turned to face her. "I hope you enjoyed the show."

Mai felt her face turn hot with embarrassment. "Its nothing I haven't seen before." She replied testily.

Andy advanced towards her with the slow deliberate swagger of a predator and Mai found herself longing to be devoured by him. It had been so long and she loved him so much but she wouldn't, no, _couldn't_ allow herself that pleasure, never again; not unless they were married.

He cupped her chin in his hand, tilting her face up to meet his eyes. For one brief, fleeting moment she though he was going to kiss her and she would lose all self-control and fall into that kiss. She longed to feel his lips on hers again and yet dreaded it at the same time. Her lips parted slightly with anticipation.

"Come with me?" He asked.

"What?"

"Up in the mountains." He clarified. "Come hunting with me. There are hot springs, maybe they could relieve some of your tension."

"I'd rather just stay home."

His shoulders slumped and his face sank, Andy looked utterly and completely crestfallen. "Fine." Mai's heart felt another stab of guilt for denying him. "Still, I'm happy." He attempted a smile.

"Why?"

"This is the most you've spoken to me since that day."

'_That day…'_ The day she had dragged him out to the Jizou statues and told him of his unborn children. The day she had begged him not to leave her ever again. The day she had trapped him here by his own sense of obligation. The last day she had really spoken with him. _That_ day. Mai felt another wave of guilt wash over her and she for a moment felt like she might drown in its current.

"I have chores to do." She said, turning to leave him to prepare on his own. "Just don't get hurt."

"I won't."

She knew.

…

"This is so cool! This is the first time I get to see a freaking _ninja_ in action!" Mountain Ranger Kino was practically bursting with enthusiasm as he and Andy trudged up the snow leaden mountain trail.

Andy hated the way the wide bulky snow shoes forced him to widen his step and he wished that Kino-san would just shut-up. The man's chatter was getting on his nerves, while Andy might have stopped off at the Ranger's station a few times during his early morning jogs he had never before spent any extended amount of time with the man and was now beginning to believe that that had been a good thing.

"You don't go hunting much, do you Kino-san?" Andy observed more than asked.

"Not really, no."

"Well, I need you to be quite, if you can. Please."

"Oh, sure thing!" He promptly shut his mouth and mimed zipping it.

One of the things that made Winter great was that it made tracking easy. Tracks could easily be found in the snow and were usually deep enough that even the blind could spot them a mile away.

Andy's bulky snow shoes kept him atop the white fluffy mass that covered the landscape, but judging by the depth of the tracks the snow was about knee deep and very thick near the bottom. The pattern of the tracks was sporadic, as if his quarry were trying to keep to the trees but failing and falling to the ground every now and again. They followed the trail to a sheer rock wall, as if the very living rock of the mountain had been torn away. Here the trail stopped.

"Well, what do we do now?" Kino-san asked.

"Climb." '_Obviously._' Was Andy's clip of a response.

"Up that?" The Ranger looked at the rock wall skeptically. "I don't think I can do that. Least, not without ropes and equipment and stuff…"

"I s'pose that's why you're a mountain ranger and not a ninja." Andy muttered, then to Kino said, "Fine, stay here. We'll call this 'Base Camp' or whatever fancy name you wanna give it. I'll find out if our monkey-man monster thing's trail continues on up there or if we're just chasing while geese."

"'Kay."

Andy unstrapped his snowshoes, happy to be rid of their bulk and regain his full range of motion. He examined the rock wall for a moment or two before choosing a foothold and handhold to start from and scaling the wall. The top leveled off into a small platform that dropped back down onto the other side. Andy leaned over the far edge and was rewarded with the foul stench of sulfur; apparently there was a hot spring down the other side.

Even without the horrid rotten egg smell he would have know there was a spring there, steam wafted upward, obscuring his vision and making it difficult to judge the depth of the chasm. He swung one leg over the edge, testing for foot holds. When he found one that could support him he lowered the other leg, then the rest of his body and slowly climbed down the other side. As it turned out it was nowhere as deep as the side he'd first come up had been, in fact it was only twice as tall as he was and he felt like a moron when he was startled by his foot suddenly impacting the hard ground while testing for foot holds that were no longer necessary.

'_Now all you need to do is fall face first into the spring when its two feet in front of you.'_ He teased himself silently, feeling the fool for not noticing the shallow depth of the cliff sooner.

It was warmer down here than it was up top and Andy was glad for the break from the cold. He really wished Mai _had_ come with him. Leaving Kino behind at the wall meant that it would have been just the two of them here now and it was warm enough that they could easily strip down without having to worry about hypothermia. Mai had such a wonderful body and it had been so long since he's seen it unclothed and covered in a sheen of sweat.

Andy pushed that thought away for now. However pleasant it was, it was unimportant to the moment. The mission; that was what he needed to focus on now.

There was no snow in the chasm and rock didn't form tracks so there was nothing for Andy to go on but gut instinct. Again he wished Mai had come with him, he was a good fighter, tracker and ninja but he was crap when it came to gut feelings and instincts. Terry was the "gut feeling" brother, Andy was the quite "I need a goal in sight" brother. Right now his goal was to find and catch the creature that had been terrorizing these mountains, but no sign of it was in sight. He could really use Terry's gut or Mai's Woman's Intuition right about now.

Andy circled the chasm, slowly spiraling his way towards the center where he decided the hot spring must be. The chasm had probably formed when the spring first broke the surface and was originally quite deep, but as time wore on and the spring's pressure dropped so did the water level until it was just a hot puddle at the bottom of a very large hole.

When he finally reached the edge of the spring-proper he noticed a grouping of flat stones laid out almost like a table, a table in the sense that it was a level bit of stone that one could eat off of, and that appeared to be just what someone had done. The makeshift stone table was covered in empty chip bags, granola bar wrappers and other assortments of wrapping for junk and camping food.

Andy picked up a half eaten rice cake and examined it. No sooner had he done this then he suddenly felt another body ram into him, and _hard_.

"Mine." A voice, presumably belonging to his attacker, cracked.

Andy rolled to the side, using the momentum from his assailant's attack to propel him farther from his opponent, putting some space between them so that he could catch his breath. The steam still obscured his vision but from what he had seen of his attacker, he looked _mostly_ human and since he had spoken Andy assumed that he _was_ human and not some half-monkey hybrid.

He heard feet padding across the stone, coming toward him for another strike. Andy whirled around and backhanded his opponent, knocking him to the ground. The aggressor's head struck the stone and he promptly fell unconscious. Andy leaned over his fallen foe to finally get a clear look at him.

"Aw crap."

With the steam no longer obscuring his vision Andy now saw that his assailant had been a kid, no older than thirteen or fourteen. The boy looked terribly mal-nourished and was dressed in near rags. In fact if it weren't for the warmth of the hot spring Andy was pretty sure the boy would be dead of hypothermia already.

…


	3. Insomnia

Disclaimer: Don't own it, just borrowing.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Three: Insomnia

Mai smoothed out the blankets she had spread over the unconscious boy that Andy had brought back from the mountains with him. He was just a child, no older than thirteen or fourteen, a child on the cusp of becoming a man. Mai was no doctor by any stretch of the imagination but even she could tell that the boy was malnourished just by looking at him. It was a wonder he had survived up in mountains all alone (assuming he had been alone).

She brushed a strand of stray hair away from the child's face; he looked so calm and peaceful while sleeping. Mai wondered if her own children would have looked like that had they lived. Would they sleep like little angels or would they drool all over their pillows like Andy did sometimes?

Speak of the Devil (or rather, think of the Devil), and he shall appear. Andy slid open the paper screen and entered the room with the silent grace of a cat, carful not to disturb the child that he had rescued -or abducted.

"How is he?"

"Alive." Mai responded mechanically. It felt odd to have Andy show concern for something that didn't directly affect him, especially when that thing was a human child. "And half-starved. Honestly! How did he survive up there?"

"I assume he stayed close to the hot springs to keep from hypothermiating and stole food from hikers that got to close to his home." He replied, sitting down next to her. Mai edged away from him ever so slightly, just enough for Andy to notice, a sign that she was still trying to distance herself from him. "I just got off the phone with Nakamura." Andy continued, pretending not to notice her action. "He says the kid's prints don't match anyone's in their database. As far as he can tell he's not a documented citizen of Japan."

"So we don't know if he has a family out there looking for him right now."

"Hey, we'll find out where he came from." Andy reassured her, or at least attempted to. "And while we're looking we can put him up here. We've got the space and it might be nice having company for a while."

Mai had a feeling that his 'company' remark was an allusion to her reclusive and standoffish behavior. She felt another pang of guilt but pushed it back down. If he was lonely then he could just as easily go and visit Higashi in Tokyo. So long as Andy didn't follow him to Thailand or run off to South Town he wouldn't be violating his promise to stay with her. So long as he didn't leave the country and so long as he came back to her.

She wasn't looking to forward to housing this wild child either. He seemed charming enough while sleeping but who knew what the feral boy would do once he woke up. She didn't want to have to deal with the drama of yet another traumatized character or extreme personality type living under her roof. In all honesty she wanted to drop the boy with Child Services and let them sort it all out, but Andy would never allow that.

Before they had been adopted by Jeffry Bogard, both he and Terry had lived in the Foster Care System in America and the experience had not been pleasant. Andy hated foster care and would never let her pass guardianship of this wild boy over to them. She wondered if he was starting to draw a parallel in his mind between himself and Jeff and this boy. She felt the beginnings of anger and just a little bit of jealousy creep into her heart. He was willing to care for this feral foundling but not about her and their _own_ children?

"He can't stay here." She said, her voice deadpan.

"Why not? We've got the space."

"This is a dojo, Andy, not an orphanage." She reminded him. "When he wakes up we'll drop him off at the nearest Child Services office. They can take him from there."

"You're not fucking _serious_!"

She expected his reaction; Andy's experiences in the American Foster System had made him prejudice against all foster care agencies. She knew her decision would upset him before she even said it, but she didn't want the boy to stay here. She couldn't deal with having a child in the house, not now. Her wounds from the child she had aborted in '01 were still fresh and she couldn't handle having another child in the house, not a child that wasn't her own.

"I don't want him here, Andy."

"If you put him in the System you might as well just dump him back up on that damn mountain alone!" He snarled at her. "I will _not_ let you do that! I will not let you toss an innocent _boy_ into a System that treats foster kids like _garbage_!"

"He's not _my_ child!" Mai shot back. "He's not my responsibility."

Andy glared at her for a long while. She could only guess his thoughts. He had been a foster child and knew better than anyone how awful it was, but that had been in America, surely the foster system in Japan was better, or at least different. She met his eyes briefly before turning her gaze to the floor; this was an argument that she wouldn't win, not without losing Andy as well.

"He won't be my responsibility." She said again, more subdued this time.

"Fine." Andy agreed, a bit of a clip to his voice. "I'll take care of him, he'll be my responsibility. You can go back to being a hermit if that's what'll make you happy."

Her head shot up. "That's not…" She wanted to say that that wasn't what would make her happy, but then realized that she didn't know _what would_ make her happy again. She'd been depressed for so long that it felt like she had forgotten what "happy" was. She didn't really have time to figure out what she wanted because the boy began to stir and both she and Andy leaned over to see if he would wake.

The boy was startled to full weakness when he realized he was no longer in his secluded mountain home and was surrounded by strangers. He bolted upright in bed. "Where-!"

"Shh, don't move so quickly." Mai ordered pushing him back down. He was surprisingly strong for a pubescent teenager and offered considerable resistance. "Lay back down."

"Where am I?" The boy continued to press. "Who are you people? What's going on?"

"We'll tell you when you calm down." Mai told him. The boy relaxed back onto the bed. Mai turned to face her estranged lover. "Andy, you said he'd be your responsibility. You can start by being the one to explain how he got here."

Without waiting for his response she stood and exited the room, leaving Andy alone with the mysterious monkey-like boy. The blond ninja heaved a sigh, hoping the boy didn't remember that it had been he whom had knocked him out. It had been hard to see in the steam, he may not recognize Andy.

"We found you up in the mountains." He began. "You were knocked unconscious and I brought you back here." Short, simple, concise, that was what was best. Only give the facts and don't dress it up with pretty words.

"What is this place?" The boy asked, casting his eyes about the room in innocent fascination. He had turned from suspicious to curious rather quickly.

"The Shiranui dojo." Andy answered. He wondered if the boy was up for answering questions as well as he was asking them. The sooner they found out where he had come from the sooner they could get him back to his home. "What's you're name kiddo?"

"Hokutomaru." He answered matter-of-factly, while studying the painting on the shoji screens in fascination. "My head hurts." He reached a hand up to feel the large bump that had formed on the back of his head where it had collided with the ground up at the hot spring.

"Uhh…" Andy said with all the eloquence of an idiot. "I'll get you some ice to put on that."

Andy also stood and left as Mai had. He wondered if he should stop by her room, if for no other reason then to find out if she would talk to him again. Today had been the most that they'd spoken to one another since _that day_ and he hoped it wouldn't be the last time she spoke with him ever.

As furious as he had been with her for even suggesting that they give the boy, Hokutomaru, to child services it was still just hot surface anger, it burned off quickly and when it was gone it left an emotional burn scar that could only be soothed by Mai's gentle words or, should he dare to hope, her touch.

He longed to feel her hands on him once more. Before he had left for his mission in the mountains, when she was watching him gear up he had wondered if she was going to jump him like she used to. Just rush in and pounce on him, pin him down, bite his bottom lip and have her way with him. He wished she had. It just felt so awkward and weird having her watch him change without even the slightest hint that she was still attracted to him.

He wanted her so badly and yet she was forbidden to him, her rule of abstinence holding firm. He had wondered if he had overstepped his bounds when he had taken her face in his hand, had wondered if she would pull away and tell him he was taking liberties that he did not have. But she didn't and that had encouraged him. But with Hokutomaru now living with them, on his insistence no less, he doubted he'd ever be allowed to make love to her ever again.

The world looked so bleak and depressing right now.

Andy returned to the boy's room with the promised ice pack and sat beside the bed in lotus position.

"Here." He held out the ice pack. "So, Hokutomaru-kun, is there a surname to go with that?"

"Surname?" The boy blinked in utter confusion.

"A surname, a family name, the name that identifies you with a group of relatives." Andy tried to explain, not sure if he was doing it right or not.

"No." The boy said. "I don't have one of those."

Andy didn't quite know what to say to that. Everyone had a surname, even he and Terry did before they became "Bogard", he didn't remember what his old surname had been but he remembered having one. Maybe Hokutomaru just didn't remember his family name.

"Okay. Where do you live?" If he couldn't find his family by name he could at least narrow down an area to search.

"The mountain."

"The mountains are a big place, kiddo." Andy reminded him. "Any particular area? Mino? Sanjo?" He tried naming as many towns as he could remember that were all considered "mountain villages".

"No." The boy shook his head. "None of those."

"What was your home called?" Andy pressed, becoming exasperated. Children didn't just fall out of the sky. He must have a home and a family somewhere.

The boy just shrugged. "Mori no Yama."

Andy's face fell into the palm of his hand. "Mori no Yama" meant the "mountain's forest" or the woods that grew all over these mountains. Basically, the boy was calling the entire mountain range his home. Now he truly was exasperated. Maybe he had jarred something when he'd knocked the boy out, or he hadn't yet recover enough to answer these questions, or maybe the boy was just slow to begin with. Andy pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to stave off an oncoming stress headache.

"Gosaige-san?" Hokutomaru asked, referring to Andy as "Mr. Yellow-hair" a reference to the color of his blond mane and a reminder that Andy was yet to introduce himself to the boy. "What do you do at a dojo?"

"We train in martial arts." He answered. "And my name's not 'Gosaige' its Andy."

"Andy-san." The boy tested the name. "And the other was…"

"Mai. Shiranui Mai, she owns this dojo."

"Is she your wife?"

The boy's question was not unexpected; they were after all two young people living alone together. It was a natural conclusion to draw, but for Andy the question was still jarring. For almost as long as he'd known her, Mai had been trying to get him to marry her and for almost as long as he'd known her he'd been evading her come-ons. He felt a pang of guilt poke at that fresh wound in his heart. Maybe if he had married her she never would have done what she did and they wouldn't be in the situation they were in.

But he hadn't married her and it seemed that a proposal from him now wouldn't be enough. He needed to offer Mai more that just a ring and some vows. He needed to offer up something of himself, he needed to suffer in a way similar to how she had suffered alone when she had found herself with child and him nowhere to be found. A marriage alone could not heal their relationship; marriage alone wasn't enough.

"No, she's not my wife."

"Oh."

…

The boy's injuries didn't seem too severe but Andy still feared he might have a concussion and so refused to let him fall back asleep. They stayed up and played cards or Go for a few hours, Hokutomaru moaning and groaning the whole time about how he was tired and Andy was mean for not letting him sleep.

While annoying, the boys complaints reminded Andy of himself and Terry when they were much younger and still living with Jeff. Hokutomaru was much older than they had been back then but he seemed to display a level of maturity and intelligence much closer to that of a ten-year-old rather than a teenager. Andy wonder just how long he had been up in those mountains alone to still be at such a low level of mental development.

After a few more hands of Go Fish, Andy decided that enough time had passed for the boy to be out of any real danger from a concision and let him, finally, fall asleep. He was out before his head even hit the pillow, his shallow and even breaths the only sound in the stillness of the night.

As silently as he could, Andy stood and left, intending to get some sleep of his own. He paused, once again, outside the door to Mai's bedroom. She would most definitely be asleep by now, he wondered what she would say if he woke her. What would _he_ say if he were to wake her?

"Hi, Mai. Don't take this the wrong way, but I've been horny for the past few months now and waking-off just ain't cuttin' it. I can has sex nao?"

Yeah. That would go over real well with her.

He imagined her reaction would be something along the lines of, "What!? No!! Get the fuck out, duschebag!"

If he was lucky he might get out with his penis still attached but his balls would most certainly be forfeit along with a few of his fingers. He sighed. She used to love his fingers…

He shook his head in a vain attempt to banish the ribald image from his mind but it had already taken hold. As he continued down the hall to his room, his mind played through some of his most fond memories of their intimate encounters. How she would press her back against his chest while spooning, the way she moaned low in her throat when he slipped his middle finger inside her, the feel of her warm cum running over his hand to drip on the futon, her hand stroking his shaft, his hand on her breast… God, he loved her breasts!

They were so soft and pliant under his hands, so full and voluminous that he often needed both hands to fondle just one, and they felt so good wrapped around his shaft. He loved the feel of his stiff member pressed between her breasts, and when she would teas his tip with her tong or when, be he ever so lucky, she would take him in her mouth…

Or when she would finally allow him to slip inside her warm and receptive body. How she would rake her nails down his back or bite his bottom lip when her climax came…

Andy placed a hand on the wall to steady himself as his un-channeled desire pressed against the cotton barrier of his pants. It was sometimes so difficult to live with this effect she had on him, she didn't even have to be in the room, all he had to do was _think _about Mai and he was rock hard and aching for her.

Andy grabbed a box of tissues from the bathroom before finally barricading himself in his room. He flopped down on his futon and struggled to free himself from his restrictive pants. Free at last he sighed deeply with relief and relaxed onto the bed, lying on his side he gently stroked his shaft while thoughts of Mai played through his head, slowly pushing him to a solitary climax.

And it was at that exact moment just as he was climaxing that Mai chose to enter his room. He didn't know why she was coming to see him so late at night. He didn't even know what she was still doing up this late. All he could think about was how quickly he could get the blanket over himself before she had the chance to see him jizz all over the place.

He gasped her name in shock but all that really came out was a strangled sigh that didn't even resemble a language let alone her name. She stood there, standing in the doorframe, frozen in shock (or mortification, Andy couldn't tell). She opened her mouth to speak then thought differently and closed it again.

The two of them remained there like that for a time, neither saying a word, just staring at each other. Just when Andy was about to speak Mai backed up, silently shutting his bedroom door as she did so, and left. Leaving him alone, exactly how she had found him, her footsteps fading down the hall the only sound in the dark house.

"God, freaking _damn it_!" Andy swore, smacking himself in the forehead for not speaking when he'd had the chance. Unfortunately for blond ninja he completely forgot that he still held the tissue soggy with his own ejaculate in his hand. "_Gah! Ugh!!"_

…

Mai lay awake thinking. She really had made herself out to be such a villain today. Andy had done the right thing by rescuing that child from the mountains and she had no right to condemn him to the foster system. She listened to them in the other room, far down the hall, playing Go-Fish, Go or just talking, keeping the boy awake because Andy feared he'd hit him to hard and given him a concussion. The more she listened the more she hated herself because she realized that Andy was really good with kids, that he would have made a great father. All this time she thought he never wanted children and now here he was slipping into the role so easily.

She wondered if he even noticed.

Maybe he was seeing himself in Jeff's shoes, maybe he was looking at that wild child and seeing himself from so many years ago, living alone with his brother on the streets of South Town. Maybe he was trying to follow in his father's footsteps. Maybe he had more caring and depth of feeling than she gave him credit for because she was to busy wallowing in self-pity to see past herself and her own bias views. Mai rolled over and buried her face in her pillow. She was an idiot.

She listened to the boy complaining about how mean Andy was being for making him stay up so late. Mai wondered if Andy had whined like that back before he came to live at the Shiranui dojo, back before his father died. The boy was much older than Andy had been when his father had passed away but, if the boy's whining was any indication, he was about the same mental age as a ten-year-old. A child like that would be an even bigger handful; Mai silently dreaded the prospect of him living at the dojo. She had a sinking feeling that, to spite the fact that he was 'Andy's responsibility', she would end-up being the one to take real care of the boy.

Andy's voice drifted to her from down the hall, murmuring that it was okay for the boy to finally sleep now. She heard the door to the boy's room slide open and shut and Andy's padded feet in the hall. His steps paused outside her door, just as he had earlier that morning and just like earlier that morning she feared he would barge in. Was he still mad at her about not wanting the boy to stay? Would he come in and tell her how much of a bitch she was being? She deserved it if he did, be she still hoped he wouldn't.

Mai heard him heave a heavy sigh before continuing back down the hall to his own room and for some reason she wished he _had_ come in and yelled at her. Andy was such a passionate person but ever since that day, he had been so passive, it just wasn't him. As much as he annoyed and angered her, she missed the old Andy Bogard. He had been her first love, all her life she'd ever only loved one man and now, by her own hand, that man was being pushed away. She should talk to him. She'd been telling herself that for days now, they _needed_ to sit down together and sort themselves out or else one or both of them was going to go insane living like this.

Mai resolved she would try and talk to him, soon, tonight, _now!_

She crawled out of bed and padded down the hall to Andy's room as silently as her bare feet would allow. She hesitated outside his door for just a moment before sliding it open all that way.

Mai stood there, frozen for a few moments as she watched Andy scramble for a blanket to cover his stiff erection. She'd seen Andy cum before, she'd most often been to one to do it, she's had him spray on her breasts or her face, she'd even swallowed his load a few times but that had all been a long wile ago and it seemed like it was ages since she's watched Andy climax. His face pinched in an expression that was half-way between elation and pain, his back arching ever so slightly and a gasp that was half sigh. She missed being the one to make him do that.

He gasped something that might possibly have been her name, but it really barely even resembled a language so she wasn't sure. The two of them just stayed there for long moments, just staring at one another, not saying a word. She studied his eyes that still carried the fog of the euphoria of orgasm, the line of his jaw, his quivering Adam's apple, the strait lines of his collarbones, the supple but pale skin pulled tight over his pectorals, the somewhat fast passed rise and fall of his chest with his breathing.

Mai felt her own desire start to rise. Whispering over her skin and tingling down her spine before it polled between her thighs.

They weren't going to talk about anything tonight. If she stayed, if she entered his room fully and tried to talk they would just end-up sleeping together. Andy may have just finished himself but she knew from experience that he would try his damnedest to give her just as much of a release that he got and that was something that she just wasn't ready for, not yet, not now.

Andy opened his mouth to speak but Mai took a step back. She didn't what to hear what he had to say. Whether it was an apology for what she's just witnessed or a rebuke for walking in on him she couldn't hear it. She felt like if he said anything to her, be it comforting or hurtful, she would try to silence him with a kiss, a kiss that would most assuredly turn into something much _much_ more.

She shut the bedroom door behind her and left as silently as she had come. From down the hall she quite clearly heard Andy's exclamation of, "God, freaking _damn it_! _Gah! Ugh!!"_ Before barricading herself in her own room.

…


	4. Advance

Disclaimer: I don't a thing, I'm just borrowing for some non-profit entertainment.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Four: Advance

Andy did not leave the dojo that morning to skate, nor to jog, nor to do calisthenics. She could hear him moving throughout the house, the creek of a floorboard in the hall, the sliding open and shut of a shoji screen, dishes clinking in the kitchen. Andy never took breakfast before some sort of workout in the mornings and he barely ever cooked anyway. What was he doing fussing around in the kitchen?

Mai sat up on her futon, sighing heavily. As much as she wanted to just lay back down and fall back asleep, as much as she wanted to lose herself to sleep's sweet oblivion, she knew she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep before knowing what Andy was up to. She pulled her heavy robe on over the lighter yukata she preferred to sleep in before exiting her room.

The house was still dark, a slight pinkish-grey tinting the screens on the eastern side. It was early in the morning even for Andy to be up. True, he was an early riser by nature but he was still human and neither of then had gotten much sleep last night.

…

Since he couldn't sleep and didn't feel much like training and it was still to early to even dream of waking Mai (not that she'd want to see him anyway, after what she had witnessed last night), he figured he might as well start fulfilling his obligation as the un-official and by no means legal guardian of Hokutomaru. He decided to make breakfast, or rather; he decided to _attempt_ to make breakfast.

Andy was no great cook by any stretch of the imagination and, in fact, had been banned from the kitchen back during his years training under Master Hanzo. Mai had latter repealed that ban after his first return from South Town, after he'd failed to kill Geese Howard and realized that Terry was the superior fighter. Still, even if he was allowed back in the kitchen that didn't automatically make him a great cook. Truth be told, all he knew how to make was spaghetti.

Maybe Hokutomaru might like spaghetti and natto for breakfast.

"What are you doing?"

He turned at the sound of Mai's sleepy voice. She stood, leaning against the doorframe, her heavy house-robe open and hanging from her shoulders showing the pink cotton yukata she liked to sleep in. Her hair was loose and unbound, still wild and messy from sleep, falling around her shoulders in a tangled mane. She looked a mess, she looked beautiful!

"Makin' breakfast." He answered dutifully. "You want any?"

"What time is it?" She glanced toward the microwave clock, running a hand through her wild hair. Andy suddenly found himself suppressing the urge to reach out and caress her hair. "God! It's barely even five!"

"I couldn't sleep."

"Obviously." She scoffed then her eyes fell on the unopened package of spaghetti noodles on the counter and natto that he had just removed from the refrigerator. "You didn't seriously just try to offer me that affront to the culinary arts that you dare to call food, did you?"

Andy looked politely insulted. "I'll have you know that Spaghetti ala Natto is an Andy Bogard special."

Mai glared at him for a moment or two before sighing and saying, "Move. You can't cook for shit, I'll make breakfast."

She stowed the package of spaghetti back in the pantry and, taking the natto out of Andy's hands, replaced it back in the 'frige. She then measured enough rice for three people into the rice cooker and set some miso on to boil along with the kettle for tea.

"Can I help?" Andy offered.

"I've never needed your help before." She reminded him.

"I…" He stammered, not knowing what to say. "Ya know, this is the first morning I can remember that I haven't instantly started training."

"Oh, really? Ice skating is training now?"

The venom in her words cut him but he tried to ignore it. She was probably still mad about his decision to keep Hokutomaru (at least until they found his real family). Andy wondered briefly why she didn't just remind him that this was her house and she had more then enough right to kick them both out.

"Listen, Mai…" He paused, unsure of how to continue. "About last night…"

"Oh." She turned her attention away from the stove and faced him, her face turning a bright shade of pink. "I, um… sorry about that. If I had known that you were… uh…"

"Oh, oh no! I wasn't talking about that!" Andy felt his own cheeks warm and he knew that he was turning his own shade of red. "I meant our disagreement. About Hokutomaru."

"Hokuto…?"

"The boy. His name's Hokutomaru. Yeah, I think it's a stupid name too, but then again SNK isn't known for giving their characters great names." He quickly clarified in blatant disrespect for the fourth wall. "I… I'm sorry for yelling at you. This is your house and you have a right to decide who boards here and who doesn't."

Mai was momentarily reminded of something she had said to Andy the night before _that day_. Andy had been waiting for her on her doorstep when she returned from that year's KOF tournament. They had argued but because Andy was kind enough to "pretend" to care for her she had told him that she wouldn't call the police on him for trespassing.

"'_Trespassing'?" Andy had echoed in disbelief. "I live here!"_

"_No." She had given him her most deadly piercing look. "__I__ live here. You were my grandfather's apprentice but Ojisama is dead now. I've let you stay here from time to time because he liked you and for a while I liked you too. But you don't live here, Andy."_

Mai hadn't thought that he would continue to take that statement seriously after she had begged him to stay with her, made him promise not to leave even thought his training was suffering and his goal of one day beating his brother was slipping farther and farther away. He still thought of himself as a guest in her house. "Andy…"

"Yeah?"

"I…" Now. This was it; this was perfect, she should talk to him now! Tell him that she appreciated the fact that he was staying with her, that she knew what it was costing him, that she was sorry for trapping him, that she still loved him… no, not that last one. He probably wouldn't believe that one. She certainly hadn't been displaying any feelings of love for him these past few months. The way she's been neglecting him, she would be amazed he didn't hate her; after all, she hated herself. "This is your house too."

"My name's not on the deed." He reminded her.

"You've lived here since you were nine." She continued. "We grew-up together, you were my grandfather's apprentice and… this is your home as much as it is mine. If you want the boy, Hokutomaru, to stay here until you find his family then he can stay."

"Thank you."

They lapsed into silence. Mai leaned against the kitchen counter while Andy took up a seat at the kitchen table. She would occasionally stir the miso or poke at the timer on the rice; he leaned back in the western style chair and appeared to be meditating (or sleeping). The kettle whistled, startling them both. Mai poured the hot water into the pot and set it on the table between them, finally claiming a seat of her own across form Andy.

"It needs a few minuets to steep."

He just nodded and they lapsed back into their silence, the only thing changed was Mai's position in the room.

"How did we get this way?" Andy finally asked.

"What do you mean?"

"_This_, this isn't us, Mai." He threw his arms up in helplessness. This estrangement between them had gone on long enough, he was ready for it to end, and he was ready for them to talk. He couldn't find the answer to their problem through meditation; the only way to heal their broken relationship was together.

"Things happen, Andy." She stood and pulled two mugs down from the cupboard. "I'm not even sure I know who '_we'_ are anymore."

"We're supposed to be the comic relief pair that everyone else can point and laugh at. You're supposed to be randy and relentlessly aggressive, while I'm supposed to be awkward, prudish and have nightmares about being smoothed by double Ds."

"You have nightmares about my breasts?"

"Well… they're not exactly '_nightmares_'…" He was suddenly reminded of her walking in on him last night and decided it was best to steer the conversation away form this particular topic. "Anyway, we haven't been ourselves lately and I don't like these new people that we've become. I don't like you being a stranger to me, I don't like being kept at arms length, I… I just miss you." That last bit was said more under his breath then to her.

"I miss you too." And it was true, she did miss the old Andy Bogard more than she thought possible. "But we've changed and we can't go backwards, Andy, we have to keep moving forward or else we stagnate."

"We've _been_ stagnant for a while." He pushed his own chair back and stood as well. "I'm ready to start moving again and I'd like to keep moving with you!" He took a step towards her intending to take her hand, to touch that soft flesh that he had been forbidden to for so long.

"Don't." She slammed the mugs down on the table and backed away from him. "Don't say mawkish things! It's my fault you can't train the way you need to! It's my fault you're falling behind! It's my fault you can't challenge Terry yet! All because I made you promise to stay here with me instead of pursuing your own goals! How could you ever want to move forward with me? You probably _hate_ me, don't you?"

"Hate you! Mai, I…" The word he wanted to say caught in his throat. "I don't hate you. I can't hate you. I…"

"Stop it!"

"I put aside my training for you." He continued, advancing toward her with every statement. "I put aside my plan of surpassing Terry for you. I stayed here for _you_!" He was right in front of her now, one arm reached out and encircled her waist, pulling her body against his while his other hand stroked her hair. "I stayed for you…" A gentle whisper.

Mai gazed into his ice blue eyes, so clear and deep. For just a moment, one fleeting moment, his eyes held all the intense passion and fire the old Andy Bogard held. He had always been such a passionate person. He always felt things more deeply than he let on. "I… I'm sorry."

She trembled in his arms.

Andy held her while she shook, he didn't know what to say, he never really did, he just wasn't good with offering comfort but he was good for hugs. He stroked her hair and soothed her as best he could.

"Andy…" She ventured meekly after a while.

"Yeah?"

"If, either of those times, if I had tracked you down and told you I was pregnant instead of getting an abortion, would you… would you have married me?"

He tightened his hold on her, crushing her to his chest. "That's not important now." He knew his answer would only upset her; there was no point in making her feel any worse then she already did.

"Would you?" She pressed.

"It doesn't matter."

"Tell me."

"Its in the past."

"Tell me!"

"Yes." He hissed into her hair. "Yes, I would have married you. I would have returned with you to the Shiranui dojo and married you. I would have put my goal of surpassing Terry aside and put my skills towards providing for you and our child, our children. I would have tried to become the man you needed me to be."

"You hate me now."

"No."

"You think I'm horrible."

"No."

"Well, why not? I do!"

"I…" He didn't know what to say. He had never been good with words, actions were more his thing. He didn't know how to make Mai understand that he didn't hate her, he _couldn't_ hate her, it was just the opposite… "You couldn't have known that that would be what I would've done. I was never around, I know it seemed like I didn't care. But, Mai, I… the truth is I…" He faltered again, that one word he wanted to say once again getting stuck in the back of his throat. "I need you."

"You 'need' me." She scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest, pushing her breasts up. Andy swallowed a lump that suddenly formed in his throat. "You sure as Hell didn't seem to ever need me before! You were always away! The only time you ever came back to me was for a booty call!"

"Hey! You enjoyed our time together just as much as I did!" He hadn't meant to shout. "And if I was really only interested in you for sex why would I stick around here for almost three months when you're not putting out? Huh, Mai? Why? If all you were, all you are is sex to me!"

"You're just here to clear your own conscience!" She snapped back, pushing herself away from him. "You feel guilty over the whole thing and are just here in a superficial attempt to make things right!"

"'A superficial attempt'!" He echoed. Andy reached out and grabbed her wrist, lifting her up to her toes and glaring into her wide hazel eyes. "I gave up my goals for you, my dream of surpassing Terry; I gave it up for _you_!"

"Let go." She met his eyes glare for glare.

"I stayed here for you." He continued. "What have you done for me?"

"Let me go or else I'll let myself go."

"Mai, you haven't spoken to me in months. I stayed for you. What have you done for- Ow!"

His question was cut off by her heel colliding with his shin. Andy released his vice like grip on her wrist and staggered back wards.

"You don't listen very well." Mai likewise backed up.

"You… you haven't hit me in a while." Andy sounded so ecstatically happy when he said that. She was always so beautiful while in the heat of battle, so vibrant and passionate, like a goddess of battle in human form.

"God, what is _wrong _with you!?"

"What?"

"I kick you and you're _happy_ about it!"

"I…"

"Ya know what? This was a terrible idea, I can't talk to you." She turned to leave.

"Mai, wait!"

"Take the rice out of the cooker when the timer goes off and don't fuck-up." She ordered as she passed through the kitchen door and back down the hall to her own room.

"Don't walk away from me!"

…

"Andy-san, why is this rice split?" The boy indicated the bowl of rice Andy had served him with his miso.

"I overcooked it." Andy deadpanned.

"Oh." The boy turned back to his food. "What were you and Shiranui-san fighting about this morning?"

"What?"

"I heard you earlier this morning." The boy clarified. "You and Shiranui-san were shouting but I couldn't here what you were saying."

"Its none of your business, kiddo." Andy replied.

"Oh."

They both turned back to their meal and ate in silence, each seemingly lost in their own thoughts. Somewhere else in the house Andy heard the phone ring, he was about to stand to answer it when the ringing stopped and he assumed Mai had gotten it.

After their prolonged silence, when Andy was gathering up the empty dishes to take back to the kitchen, the boy spoke again. His eyes downcast, speaking more to the hardwood floors rather to Andy he asked, "What are you gonna do with me?"

Andy sat back down, placing the tray and dishes off to the side for the moment and focusing his full attention on the child. "Well, kiddo, I'm gonna help you find your family." He promised.

"But I already know where they are." The boy said, his voice strangely melancholy.

"Then are you ready to tell me where you live?"

"The mountains." The boy answered.

Andy suppressed the urge to face-palm, they had just been through this last night. "Tell ya what." He began. "Later today, after I've finished the dishes and found you some decent winter clothes, I'll take you up into the mountains and you can show me where you live. How does that sound?"

"Yeah, okay." He didn't sound very enthusiastic.

…

Mai didn't return to the kitchen until she was sure that Andy had left, taking that feral child he'd rescued some breakfast in bed.

"Andy-san, why is this rice split?" She heard the boy ask as she passed his room.

So not only had Andy managed to piss her off to no end but had still, with the help of a timer and automatic rice cooker, _still _managed to mess-up the simple task of cooking rice. How was it even _possible_ for him to be such an abysmal cook? It really boggled the mined.

She entered the kitchen and helped herself to a bowl of Andy's overcooked rice and poured herself a bowl of miso soup to go with it. She hadn't had much of an appetite these past few months and eating had seemed more like a chore to her. But for some reason, this morning she felt ravenous. Maybe it was these passed few months of eating so little finally catching up with her, or perhaps it had been her argument with Andy last night over the boy that made her forget her depression and replace it with a burning anger that used up more of her energy and thus required her to eat more.

Or maybe it was because of her fight with Andy just earlier that morning when she had kicked him. She hadn't done much fighting of any sort since _that day,_ and had to admit that after kicking him in the shins, mean as it was, she felt better. She had forgotten how good it felt to fight, your adrenalin pumping, heart racing, the thrill of a damaging contact or a successful block, fighting was a rush. Maybe that was why Andy had looked so happy after she'd hurt him, not because he liked the pain but because he was a fighter too and he understood the pleasure one got from violence. The only thing Mai had ever found that was just as good as a fight was sex.

Sex and violence, two of the greatest things she could think of.

She sat down at the kitchen table and sipped her tea while running through some of her past battles in her mind. That lovely _thwack_ sound of her fan impacting on someone's weak-point, that slight _sizzle_ing coming from another fighter's body after a successful Ryu En Bu and the knowledge that she had also just flashed her lovely little ass to everyone on the sidelines, the slight burning sensation of over tires muscles being forced to keep working, the exquisite feeling of waking up stiff and sore the next day and knowing that the other guy was a thousand times worse… She really did enjoy fighting.

That was what she could do. Andy's training had been suffering since he'd been staying here and she hadn't been training at all. If they sparred together, his skills would improve just like he wanted and she might finally get over this damn depression that had been weighing on her since before that day. She would just have to be careful to control herself; sex and violence, Andy embodied both of them all wrapped up in a tight blond five foot eight package. She had only just barely been able to control herself last night after walking in on him, she would have to be extra carful not to go down on him in the middle of a spar in the wide open training field (and especially with a child living with them now).

Training with Andy again was going to be an exercise in self-control as much as it would be in ninjitsu.

The phone rang, startling her from her thoughts. Mai pushed herself away from the table and stood to answer the kitchen's wall-phone. "Moshi-moshi. Shiranui residence." She answered in as pleasant a voice as she could muster.

"Ah, Shiranui-san!" Nakamura Ken, Mino's sheriff's voice crackled over the line. "I'm glad to hear you're feeling better. Bogard-kun said you were under the weather."

"I'm fine." She lied.

"Glad to hear it. I assume you know about the boy Bogard-kun brought back from the mountains yesterday."

"Hokutomaru? Yes, he woke-up last night and is doing all right. What about him? Have you found his family yet?"

"Er, no…" Nakamura admitted sheepishly. "We can't match his prints to anyone in our database. I'm calling to tell Bogard-kun that if we can't find any relatives in the next twenty-four hours I, as a sworn keeper of the peace in Mino, have to turn him over to Child Services."

"Andy won't like that." Mai said in all seriousness.

"I know." Nakamura replied in the same tone. "Anyone who went to our high school knows how much Bogard-kun hates Child Services."

"Twenty-four hours, right? Well, I'll tell him."

"Thank you, Shiranui-san."

"You're welcome. Bye, Nakamura-kun." She hung up before he had the chance to return the salutation.

Mai sighed and leaned against the paneled wood wall, resting her forehead on the solid pine. Andy would not be happy with this. If he hadn't found the boy's family by this time tomorrow then they would have to give him up. Things just weren't fair. When had the world become so complicated?

Well, complicated or not, she still had to tell him. Mai pushed herself off the wall and exited the kitchen bumping into Andy and almost causing him to drop the tray of dishes he was carrying.

"Woops. Sorry, Mai, I didn't see you there."

"Ya know, you're not really a very good ninja."

"You sure do know where to hit a guy."

She grabbed the tray from him, rattling the dishes as she did so, and returned to the kitchen to dump them in the sink. "Nakamura-kun called." She said, her back to him. "He wanted to know if you've found out where the boy came from yet."

"I was thinking I'd take him back up into the mountains today and have him show me where he lived."

"I thought he was living at that hot spring."

"No, he was _surviving _at that hot spring." There was a bit of a clip to his voice. "I'm sure he _lived_ somewhere else."

"What are you going to do if you can't find his family?" Mai asked just a little to quietly.

"I haven't figured that out yet."

"Nakamura-kun says that if you can't find his family within the next twenty-four hours we _have to_ turn him over to the authorities." She paused, waited, listened for his burst of anger; episode two of last night's Foster System drama but Andy said nothing.

He was quiet as he pored himself a cup of tea from the pot, he sipped it tentatively and then, only then after a prolonged silence said, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Mai only nodded, hoping he wasn't planning anything… devious.

"Want some help?" He asked, changing the subject. "I can dry while you wash."

"That's not necessary." She answered. "If you're gonna take the boy back into the mountains he needs some warmer clothes."

"I know."

"I think we still have some of your old clothes from when you were training under Ojisama in the storage shed. You might find something to fit him there."

"You kept my old clothes?"

"Don't flatter yourself." She scoffed. "I had been planning to reuse the material. Its not like I would wear one of your old shirts to bed on those lonely nights while you were gone."

"I didn't say you did."

"Grr. Oh, get out."

"Wait, why are you suddenly angry?"

"I said get out!"

…

A few short hours latter, Andy and Hokutomaru were both trekking back up the mountain trail to look for the boy's home.

…


	5. Nearly

Disclaimer: Don't own a thing, just borrowing.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Five: Nearly

Andy watched the boy hop from tree branch to tree branch above him only occasionally lousing his balance and falling into the soft snow.

"Are you hurt!?" Andy had rushed to the boy's side in a near panic the first time he'd fallen.

Hokutomaru had just pulled himself up out of the snow with a wide grin on his face and said a quick, "Nope." Before scurrying back up the nearest tree.

The second time he fell Andy had paused to ask, "You okay there, kiddo?"

"Yeah." Had been the boy's response before once again reclaiming the trees as his proffered mode of transportation.

The third time the boy fell Andy just kept walking, trusting Hokutomaru to alert him if he _had_ injured himself.

After observing his antics for a while Andy couldn't help but think that the boy would make a decent ninja if he were trained up a bit. He was a little rough around the edges but already had the speed and agility most ninja had to train for years to develop. Andy wondered if he had received some form of training before and just hadn't mentioned it or if he had developed his skills on his own. He seemed to have learned how to climb from the monkeys that lived in the area; he would scurry up the trees as if he were one of them.

Andy led the boy back to the hot spring where he'd found him. He figured it would be a good place to start from, since the boy would most likely know the area around the spring best it was the best place for him to get his bearings.

"Okay, which way is your home?" The American ninja asked once they had scaled the short cliff and now stood on the plateau.

Hokutomaru peered around, studying the white wintery landscape dotted with dark evergreen trees or outcropping of mountain rock that was to steep to hold the snow.

"That way." He pointed to the east where the trees looked thinnest.

"Okay. Lets go."

…

Mai lay on the floor in one of the dojo's unused washitsu rooms doing crunches. It had been months since she had done any sort of real training and if she planned to start sparring again with Andy she would need to get back into shape. Spending three months barely eating anything had done wonders for her figure but, sadly, her muscle definition had degenerated to an almost embarrassing level.

So, she had determined that while he was out searching for Hokutomaru's family, she would work on getting back into shape and become number one in Japan once again. (Not that she actually would return to her former aptitude after just one day of calisthenics, but every step in the right direction helped.) After this set she planned to roll over and do a few push-ups before practicing her forms.

She stretched before switching to push-ups; it was always necessary to stretch after working muscles, otherwise they tensed up and your crunches meant to tighten your stomach instead turned it into a curled ball of tight pain. Standing, she placed her hand on the small of her back and leaned backwards, pulling her abs out of the tight bunch the crunches had curled them into.

Off in another part of the house she heard the phone ring for the second time that morning. She opted to answer from the cordless in the dojo's office rather than the wall phone in the kitchen. That way she could keep stretching even while on the line. She had finally gotten herself up, moving and actually doing something productive and wasn't about to let herself stop before she was satisfied.

"Moshi-moshi. Shiranui desu." She answered cheerfully.

"Ah, Mai-chan!" The voice of Yamada Jubei crackled over the line. Mai didn't think it was possible but she swore she almost _heard_ him leering at her through the phone line. It was impossible, of course, you couldn't see through a telephone and there for couldn't leer at a person, but if anyone was going to find a way to, there was no doubt in Mai's mind that it would be Jubei.

"Jubei-sensei, to what do I owe the pleasure?" She responded kindly, though she didn't feel so.

"Well, I was calling for Andy." The aged master replied. "Its been a while since he's stopped by to train and I was just calling around, making sure he hadn't fallen of the face of the Earth, ya know… But I'd much rather talk to you, my dear."

There was that "leering sound" again, a subtle tone in the voice that made Mai wonder just what he was doing on the other side of the line. She self-consciously wrapped an arm around her exposed midriff. "How sweet."

"So, tell me, Mai-chan, what are you wearing right now?"

A vein in Mai's forehead twitched ever so slightly. "An old and baggy sweater and parachute pants!" She lied before hanging up.

There was something about pushing the "END" button on a cordless phone that just wasn't as satisfying as slamming a phone down on the receiver. She strolled back into the kitchen, picked up the wall phone and dialed Jubei back.

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Handing up on you once wasn't enough!" She shouted before slamming the phone down on its receiver. Yes, that was _far_ more satisfying than just pushing a button. She knew it was immature and petty but she still couldn't help but smile in satisfaction, she was beginning to feel like her old self again, more energetic and cheerful.

The phone rang again.

"What do you want now, you old _pervert_!?"

"I take offence to that." Joe's voice tutted.

"Oh, its you." Mai made no move to retract her insult. Joe wasn't a pervert but she still didn't like him. He was Andy's friend and hers by extension _only_. The two had never gotten along and she wasn't about to start liking the Muay Thai boxer any time soon. "What do you want?"

"Well, ya see, Jubei called me not to long ago looking for Andy -you know how he usually comes and hangs out with me around this time. Well, anyway, I tell 'im that he's not here and all but then I realize that I actually haven't heard from him in the last few months, not since the last tournament. So I was wondering if you as his fiancée-" here Joe coughed and Mai thought she distinctly heard the word 'stalker'. "-you might know where he might be."

"He's in the mountains." She hung up. "Ass." She added after the fact. How was it possible for someone like Andy, someone with his intelligence, to ever be friends with a loud, obnoxious, boorish, meathead like Higashi Joe?

Just as she was exiting the kitchen, intending to continue her exercises, the phone rang yet again.

"You've got to be kidding me!" She groaned. For three months no one had heard from Andy, now all of a sudden they were feeling his absence and trying to track him down, all at the same time and all turning to the same place to look? "Moshi-moshi. Shiranui desu." She answered as if it were a chore.

"Hi, Mai." Terry greeted her cheerfully. Apparently they all _were_ feeling his absence and trying to track him down, all at the same time and all turning to the same place to look. What were the chances? One would think that blond idiot would have called at least his own _brother,_ informing him of his whereabouts these past few months.

Now that she was thinking about it, it had been a while since any of her friends from the Women Fighters team had gotten in contact with her. Andy was such an anti-social loser, how come he had people clamoring to find him and yet she, a cheerful, open and friendly person, didn't get a single call from her friends between tournaments?

"Sorry to bother you. I was just wondering if Andy was ther-"

"Andy! Andy! Andy!" She shouted into the phone, unable to restrain her sudden burst of frustration. "I was once a member of Team Fatal Fury too, ya know! But does anyone ever bother to call me? No! How come you're all so worried about poor little Andy? He's a big man! He can take care of himself! Why are you even so concerned about a guy who wants to beat the living snot out of you anyway?"

There was a brief pause.

"He's my brother." Terry reminded her ever so slightly peeved by the suddenness and harshness of her out burst. Then he paused a second time. "But I guess I started off wrong. How are you? How's everything in Meno?"

"Mino!" She had to correct the name of her hometown.

"Mino, sorry. Is, uh, is everything okay? Did I call at a bad time? Should I try back latter in the month?"

"Grr!" She slammed the phone back down and stormed out of the kitchen. "When Andy gets back I'm going to punch him so hard…"

As she was passing the office on her way back to the washitsu room she had been working in the phone rang for a fourth time. By this point she was about ready to chuck the damn thing out a window. Mai wrenched the cordless off its stand and shouted into it, "Andy's not fucking here right now!"

"Uh, okay?"

"Mary?" Mai leaned against the wood frame of a shoji screen. "Sorry, I thought you were someone else."

"Nope, its me." There was an awkward pause as if she didn't know how to continue. "So, how's the weather over there?"

Mai had the sneaking suspicion that Terry had put her up to this. Of all the members that had come and gone from the Women Fighters team, Mary was among the least likely to call her. The American detective disapproved of her affection for Andy and her desire for marriage as a life's aspiration, thinking them to be un-feminist. Mary didn't call for casual chats or "girl talk".

"Cold. Snowy." She answered. "Did Terry put you up to this?"

"Why would you ask that? I mean, put me up to what? A girl can't give her colleague a call?"

"Ya know, for a cop, you're a terrible liar."

"He wanted me to find out why you're so mad at Andy." It didn't take her long to fold and divulger her true mission.

"Tell him that if his own _brother_ didn't tell him then I'm not about to." Mai ordered, a little annoyed that Terry was trying to manipulate her through a friend.

"So you _are_ mad at him!" The blond detective exclaimed in dumbfounded shock. "I told him he was wrong, that it was impossible for him to do any wrong in your eyes but he insisted. So, what'd he do? Was it another woman? Want me to deck him for ya?"

Mai sighed, suddenly feeling very tired. "I'm perfectly capable of 'decking' him myself. No, there's no other woman. There's just allot of stuff going on right now."

"Mai, c'mon, there's always lots of stuff going on. What's the problem? Oh my god! You finally found out Andy's gay!" From in the background Mai swore she clearly heard someone say "What!?" in a mixture of abject shock and horror. "Oh, hush, you know its gotta be true." Mary said to the person in the background.

"He's there with you right now, isn't he?"

"Andy?"

"No, Terry. He put you up to this and now he's there with you to see what the deal is." Mai was getting tired of this. "And Andy's not gay, _trust me_. Anyway, I gotta go. Tell Terry that Andy's leading a search in the mountains but he has to be back by morning tomorrow. He can call back then." She hung up.

Mai slumped against the screen she'd been leaning on and slid down to sit on the floor. She wrapped her arms around her legs and buried her face in her knees. '_Well, I _was_ feeling better.'_ She thought.

…

As they drew nearer and nearer to where the boy said his home was Andy noted several recent signs of an avalanche, such as bent and broken trees and a considerable amount of erosion. The stumps of late evergreens jutted up from the tossed and dirty snow while their trunks lay sever feet away, their branches stripped by the force of the cascade.

"I was at the onsen when this happened." The boy muttered by way of explanation.

"Hokutomaru-kun…" Andy paused in his steps to face the boy. "You're parents weren't… where were they when this avalanche happened?"

The boy looked down the track of destruction and pointed. Andy was afraid of that. So that was why he had been living up in the mountains all alone and surviving off stolen food from hikers and the heat of the hot springs. He didn't have a home or a family to go back to.

Andy looked at the boy as if seeing him in a new light. His parents had died yet Hokutomau went on living, doing what he needed to do to survive, just like him and Terry way back when. This kid was a survivor!

"Do you want to go and pay your respects to them?" He asked. It was always good to honor the recently departed or else you might be looking over your shoulder for vengeful ghost for the rest of your life. But at the same time, Andy didn't want to force the boy to do anything he wasn't yet ready to do.

Hokutomaru continued to gaze down the path of debris the avalanche had left in its wake. "Uh-uh." He said, somewhat subdued.

"Okay. Ya wanna go back to the dojo?"

"Uh-huh."

"Okay." Andy wondered what he was going to do once they got back. He had sort of found the kids family but the boy couldn't go back to living in the mountains all-alone. Tomorrow morning Nakamura would come with a social worker to pick the boy up and throw him into the system. Life just didn't seem to be fair to anyone at the moment.

…

Evening had already fallen by the time Andy returned with the boy. They entered through the kitchen door, their faces down cast, their shoulder's slumped. Mai didn't have to ask to know that they hadn't been successful; all it took was one look at Andy's drained and frustrated expression to know that the boy had no family.

"How was your day?" She asked anyway.

Andy looked at her, taking in her bright red and white sports bra that barely managed to contain the swell of her sumptuous breasts, her flat exposed stomach, the curve of her hips perfectly outlined by the skin-tight exercise pants she wore. To spite his disappointment at the day's events his mouth couldn't help but water at the sight of her. "You've been working out."

"Just a bit." She chose to ignore the fact that he hadn't answered her question; she already knew the answer anyway. She turned to the boy, "Hoku-chan, you look cold. How about I make you some hot chocolate?"

"What's that?" Hokutomaru blinked up at her in utter confusion.

Mai gave a sweet smile. "Well, you're just gonna have to try it and see."

While Mai busied herself making hot chocolate for the boy that was supposed to be _his_ responsibility, Andy decided it was a good time to take a shower and change. Mai had spent the last three months living in her pajamas, now he was going to spend an evening in his. He'd never been the type to just lounge around uselessly, but after the day's disappointment he wanted to vege.

Mai and Hokutomaru's voices faded down the hall as Andy made his way to the bathroom. It had once been referred to as the "Guest Bathroom" before the estrangement that had formed between them. The bathroom that was adjoined to Mai's bedroom (formerly their bedroom) had been Their Bathroom, but not now, now it was just Mai's Bathroom and the _Guest_ Bathroom was his.

He shut the door behind him and turned on the shower, letting the cold water in the pipes heat up as he pulled off his white tunic and trousers and pealed himself out of his body-warmer and underwear.

The water was just below scalding when he finally stepped into the shower. Not quite hot enough to burn but just enough to turn his alabaster skin an angry shade of pink. Andy hissed as the piping hot water stung his chest and abs, running down his legs leaving trails of hot red flesh. The pain felt good, it was like an outward expression of his inner frustrations.

More and more he was beginning to see himself as useless, never being able to accomplish anything. He wanted to avenge his father's murder but he hadn't, Terry did instead. He had wanted to surpass Terry and become the superior fighter, but he never did, Terry was always better than him and it was looking like he always would be. He had wanted to be a good lover to Mai but he wasn't, he had been oblivious to her turmoils because he was so wrapped up in his own drama. He had wanted to find Hokutomaru's family and return the boy to them so that he wouldn't have to go through the Hell that was foster care like Andy had.

In all of those things he had failed.

In everything he set out to do it seemed he failed at it. Whether it was something major like bringing a killer to justice or something domestic and mundane like paying attention to his girl friend, it seemed he was doomed to fail at it. He just couldn't do anything right. Was he really so useless a person? (So useless a character that SNK kept cutting him out of the games?)

Andy scrubbed his already irritated skin hard, as if by doing so he could wash the stench of fail from his flesh. Of course he knew he couldn't, the only way to put an end to his seemingly endless string of failures was to do something right for a change. How _that_ was to be accomplished he wasn't sure, but he would figure something out, at least, he _hoped _he would figure something out. His track record wasn't all that great so far.

Mai would scold him if he used up all the hot water just standing there musing over his many inadequacies. Andy shut off the faucet and stepped out of the shower, padding himself down with a towel as he did so. His skin looked red and angry, a striking contrast to the wet-gold shine of his hair, Mai would have snarked about it had she been in the room. He missed her snarking. He missed lots of things about her.

He wrapped the towel around his sopping wet hair turban-style and, wrapping a second towel around his waist, stepped out of the bathroom and into the frigid air of the hall. The sounds of Mai and Hokutomaru in the kitchen assailed his ears once again and he found it harder to shut them out this time. He had failed Mai as a lover and a friend and he had failed Hokutomaru in finding his family.

He shut his bedroom door to the their sounds in an attempt to dampen them but the paper screen did little to further this goal. The American ninja did his best to ignore them as he pulled on a pair of worn grey sweatpants and a t-shirt and attempted to pull a comb through his damp matted hair.

Mai used to like to fuss over his hair. He hadn't meant for long hair to become his standard hair style, he just hadn't the means to cut it during his extended training journeys abroad and whenever he would return to the Shiranui dojo Mai would fuss over it with a comb in one hand and detangling spray in the other. She put so much effort into making his long hair look presentable that he didn't want to be insulting to her by chopping it all off afterwards. And so long hair, unbound had become his standard hairstyle and it had been because of Mai.

He gave up on the comb and decided to just go back out with messy wet hair. Mai would have dinner ready by now and he wanted to eat it while it was hot.

…

Mai couldn't believe the boy had never had hot chocolate before! Chocolate was one of the Gods' gifts to the human race and hot chocolate was a staple for raising any kind of child. She turned to pull a box of chocolate powder down from a cupboard, noting that Andy chose to leave almost the second her back was turned. She listened to his footsteps before they disappeared down the hall.

She fixed Hokutomaru the hot chocolate she had promised and was about to top it off with whipped cream but thought better of it at the last moment. If the boy had never had hot chocolate before then he would be unaccustomed to the sugar. The last thing she wanted to deal with was a hyper feral orphan on a sugar rush. She brought him his hot chocolate without any embellished decadence.

The boy gingerly sipped at the rim of his cup, weary of this strange new drink she had made for him. He must have decided it was good because he quickly began gulping it down greedily.

"Oishi!" He exclaimed happily.

"I'm glad." Mai smiled at how content he became with the simplest of things. She glanced down the hall where Andy's footsteps had disappeared. No cup of hot chocolate could make them content again it seemed.

"Shiranui-san…?" The boy began tentatively.

Mai was snapped back to the kitchen by his address. "You make me sound like an old lady!" She forced a laugh from behind her fan in an attempt to appear younger. "Call me Oneechan, O-ne-chan."

The boy paused again and then, "Oneesama… If you and Andy-san aren't married why do you live together? My Haha-ue used to say that it was _improper_ for a man and woman to live together if they weren't married." He said the word 'improper' slowly, as if he weren't entirely sure of its meaning. "She said it was loose."

Mai was taken aback by the boy's question and had no idea how to answer. She once again sent a piercing glance down the hall to where Andy had gone. The boy was supposed to be_ his_ responsibility; he should be the one to answer these uncomfortable questions. The worst part was that recently she had been wondering the same thing herself. Was she really a woman of loose morals to have been sleeping with Andy for all those years even though he refused to marry her? Even after two aborted pregnancies was she loose for still living with him even if they weren't sleeping together any more?

To avoid answering the boy's question she grabbed his near-empty mug and refilled it, this time heaping on a generous serving of whipped cream. Let Andy deal with his sugar rush latter, the boy was supposed to be his problem anyway.

He took a taste of the new topping she had added. "Wow, this is good too!"

Mai merely nodded. Now that the boy was once again distracted she set herself to work finishing dinner. She had been in the middle of it when Andy had returned with the boy; lucky for them her rice cake soup hadn't boiled over while she was distracted. She gave the pot a good stir before replacing the lid on it and reducing the heat to just a simmer. Mai then sat back down at the table across from the boy.

"So, why don't you tell me a little about yourself, Hoku-chan?" She asked, wanting to fill the kitchen's silence.

"I like climbing trees!" The boy grinned happily. "I'm really good at it too and I'm not at all afraid of falling. I fell a few times with Andy-san in the mountains and I think I scared him. He kept asking if I was okay."

"Mm." Mai nodded if for no other reason than to acknowledge that the boy had spoken. Yes, Andy did seem to have become somewhat protective of the boy. They had had him for only a day and already Andy was slipping into the roll of a father. She wondered if he even noticed, if he did notice, she wondered how it made him feel (considering their situation). It would be hard for him to have to give the boy up to Child Services tomorrow. His pre-conceived prejudice against the organization aside, Andy had formed an attachment to the boy and wouldn't let him go easily.

"Hoku-chan," She asked, "what was your home like? Where you used to live in the mountains with your family, what was it like?"

"It was great!" Another happy smile. He seemed to act far younger than he looked. He couldn't be much younger than fourteen, thirteen at the youngest, yet he spoke and behaved like a child half that age. Mai couldn't help but think that the boy was slow. "It was surrounded all around by trees and there were lots of monkeys for me to play with and they always showed me where to find hot springs and I would go and bath with them. It was fun."

Mai noted that he didn't mention anything about his parents in his little narrative. Based on his earlier statement that his mother would think that she and Andy were loose the red ninja assumed that his parents had been fairly conservative and had most likely also disapproved of his outdoor excursions with the forest folk.

He continued to prattle on about the hot springs and the monkeys as well as whatever mundane details of his life prior to meeting them he felt were important. Meanwhile, Mai was deliberating on a difficult decision in her mind. Andy wouldn't want to give the boy to Child Services; he would probably make a scene tomorrow. The boy wasn't really all that bad. A little slow and a tad annoying, but also kinda cute.

Over his narrative of his life in the mountains Mai heard the guest bathroom's door open and close followed closely by Andy's bedroom door mimicking the action. He would be returning for dinner any minuet now. She stood to once again stir the rice cake soup before portioning it out.

She placed three bowel of the piping hot dish on the table. The boy began devouring his meal almost before it had been placed in front of him.

"Wait." Mai ordered.

Hokutomaru obediently lowered his bowl back down to the table looking indignant. Mai wasn't sure why she wanted to wait for Andy; goodness knew she had spent enough time avoiding him. But she did want to transfer supervision of the child back to him.

Andy entered not long after than wearing a pair of grey sweatpants and an old T-shirt. He had accented his look with a light house robe hanging from his shoulders; he was dressed for lazing and lounging. The sight of him dressed and ready to lay about would have irritated her were it not for his face. His whole face was an angry shade of bright red as if he had tried to boil his whole face off in the shower and his hair was still damp and a tangled and matted mess. She found herself suppressing the urge to run her fingers through it… those long blond strands…

"Is there any hot water left?" She asked instead.

"Yes." He answered shortly. Andy brushed past her and took up his seat at the table. He noted that Mai had set a place for herself and looked back up, a fragile smile on his face. "You're gonna eat with us?"

Mai took in his hopeful expression and red cheeks (his fair skin had always colors so easily) and his crown of matted blond hair… he was beautiful. It had been a long time since she had admired him, just sat there and looked at him for the simple pleasure of looking at him. She supposed she could spend at least one meal with him.

She sat down at the last available place-setting and he had to take a bite of his soup to keep from smiling.

"So, um, can I eat now?" The boy asked tentatively.

…


	6. Domo

Disclaimer: Don't own a thing, just borrowing for some non-profit entertainment.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Six: Domo

Dinner had been quiet and uneventful. The three of them ate together but for all intents and purposes they might as well have each been eating alone. No words were shared, no conversations had; they were like strangers to one another.

After dinner Hokutomaru asked to be excused. He had had a trying day and had to face the loss of his parents for a second time, Andy assumed the boy wanted to have a good cry alone. He nodded his consent after a quick glance at Mai and the boy disappeared from the kitchen, dutifully placing his dishes in the sink before making his exit.

Andy and Mai were left in the silent kitchen alone and together.

"Want me to do dishes?" The blond offered. "You cooked so it's only fair." He cast a lopsided smile at her, hoping to get something similar in return.

The red ninja shrugged her elegant shoulders, making her breasts bounce in their sports bra in a way that made Andy's mouth water. "If you want."

He finished clearing the table and began filling the sink with warm soapy water, rolling the sleeves of his house robe up as he did so. Mai couldn't help but flush, men who did the dishes were always so sexy. She ran her arms over her bare shoulders as a lover might have whilst thinking of how wonderful it would be to feel his hands upon her once again.

Andy caught the motion out of the corner of his eye and interpreted it to mean that she was cold to spite the relative warmth of the kitchen. He slid his house robe off his broad shoulders and wrapped it around her slight frame.

"What was that for?"

"You looked cold."

"I can take care of myself you know." In spite of her own words Mai adjusted the material around herself so as to be more comfortable (he was, after all, somewhat larger than she was) and made no move to take the robe off. It smelled like Andy, like Dove soap and Head and Shoulders with just the slightest hint of perspiration and male musk. She loved that scent.

"You wanna dry?" Andy extended a dishtowel to her.

Mai looked at him in his faded grey sweats and T-shirt, his broad shoulders and exposed biceps, muscles that ripples pleasingly under his fair skin, his open face, eyes pleading with her for something, lips slightly parted… she wanted to kiss those lips, to nibble his bottom lip in that way that made him buck his hips…

"I cooked." She said. "Clean-up is your job." And with that she exited the kitchen, still wearing his robe.

She walked strait from the kitchen to her office, pushing her amorous thoughts for the blond fighter aside and pulled out her attorney's phone number. Mai had spent the past few month ignoring Andy, it was about time she did something nice for him, something big, something that he would really appreciate.

…

Andy placed the last of the dishes used at dinner in the draining rack to drip dry. It had felt like he was making real progress with Mai, for the briefest of moments he thought she was about to lean into him, about to tell him that she still loved him. But, lamentably, she hadn't.

He was truly beginning to wonder if she had actually fallen out of love with him. She had spent almost all of her adult life trying to get him to commit to her, now after all that she was just done. She had stopped loving him and he was left feeling lost, lonely and slightly abandoned. That's what he got for allowing himself to love, he supposed. He loved his father and he was murdered, he loved his master, Hanzo-sensei and he had died, he loved his old master – his father's mentor and friend – Tung Fu Rue and he had been killed. It seemed like everything he loved he lost, so why should Mai be any different.

But she was different. Unlike the rest this wasn't an innocent platonic love born from respect, this was Eros-love, romantic love, amorous love. And, unlike the others, Mai was not lost to him by death. She was still here and he could still fight (metaphorically fight) for her love.

Andy dried his hands on the dishtowel and went to find Mai. She was in her office and had, apparently, just finished what seemed like a serious phone conversation. He knocked lightly on the shoji door's wood frame to announce his presence.

"Hi."

"Did you need something?" She asked.

"I, um…" Andy reflected that it probably would have been smarter to think of something to say _before _disturbing her in her office. "I thought about doing some light training before bed and was wondering if you might want to spar with me?"

Her answer caught in the back of her throat. She had resolved to start sparring with him again but didn't feel much like it tonight. "I'm busy, Andy." Mai looked back at what she had scribbled on a note pad. Presumably notes from whatever phone conversation he had walked in on. "I have allot of work to do before they come to pick Hokutomaru up tomorrow."

"Oh, right." His expression darkened upon being reminded of Child Services imminent visit tomorrow.

"Your brother called earlier today." Mai quickly rushed to change the subject. "I told him to call back tomorrow but why don't you call him back tonight instead?"

"Because it's six in the morning where he is right now." Andy reminded her of the fourteen-hour time difference between Japan and South Town, USA.

"It was a suggestion." She shrugged, the motion causing his house robe to fall off her shoulders.

Andy reached forward and replaced the material, tucking it up around her neck. He was tempted the trail one of his hands down from her throat to the gap between her breast but he refrained from such a forward gesture. She had made it quite clear that she wanted none of it from him, not any more.

"Andy…?"

He removed his hand from her person and balled it into a fist at his side. "I think I'll just go to bed."

She nodded. "Put a tie or something on your door this time, okay."

"What? No! I mean…" He sighed; of course she would think he was going to bed this early for some _private time_. In all honesty, even though that wasn't his plan he probably would end up 'unloading' his frustrations into his futon. "I'll be more careful from now on."

"Good."

"But you've got to learn to knock."

"I…" Her cheeks colored in a way that was not unpleasing.

"Unless," Andy began, taking her chin in his hand, "unless you wanted to walk in on me."

She pulled her face out of his gentle grip. "Its nothing I haven't seen before. _Good night_, Andy."

He looked crest fallen but muttered a kind "Oiyasumi nasai." Before exiting.

…

The next morning offered a clear and cloudless sky due most likely to the biting wind that whipped their scarves around their necks and turned their cheeks an angry shade of pink. Hokutomaru was still wearing the same clothes he'd had on when Andy had found him but with the addition of a warmer jacket (the one he had worn during the search expedition the previous day) and a bright red scarf (courtesy of Mai).

Andy and the boy waited at the top of the stairs for Nakamura to arrive with the social worker that would take custody of Hokutomaru. Andy's expression was stony and impassive as the wind turned his hair into a wild mess around his dispassionate face. The boy watched with idle curiosity as the police officer and social worker climbed the stairs to the Shiranui dojo.

"I'll never… _pant_ …understand how… _pant_ …you can do this all the time, Bogard-kun." Nakamura gasped once he had reached the top of the stares.

Andy just shrugged and looked past his former schoolmate to the social worker that was struggling up the stairs behind him, the wind whipping her skirt about her thighs. He thought momentarily about helping the woman up, it would be the bigger thing to do, especially considering that he had decided that she was the 'enemy'. Luckily, he didn't have to because Nakamura reached down at step to help her the rest of the way up.

"Bogard-kun, this is Touda Misato." Nakamura introduced her.

"Hajimemashite." She smiled sweetly at Andy and pushed her glassed up the bridge of her nose.

"Dozou youroshiku." He answered in a monotone and then gave the slightest of bows to her, just enough so as to not be rude but not enough to convey any form of actual respect.

She accepted it all the same and bowed in return before turning her attention to the boy. "And you must be Hokutomaru-chan." She gave another sweet smile. "You can call me Misato-oneecha."

Instead of testing her name out or giving a polite bow as would have been expected of someone in his position the boy instead blurted out, "What is that you wear on your face?"

Andy's impassive façade cracked just long enough for him to face-palm at the boy's naïveté.

"Wah?" Touda-san sputtered, her hands reaching up to feel her skin under her glasses. "Is there something on my face?"

"No, you look beautiful, Touda-san." Nakamura assured her.

"He means your glasses." Andy explained.

"Oh." She turned back to Hokutomaru. "I wear these to help me see." She explained. "I'd be blind without them."

"Oh." Was the boy's only response.

Andy cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Shiranui-san," he was always very carful never to refer to Mai by her given name without honorific to those not affiliated with the King of Fighter tournaments, "wanted me to invite you all in for tea."

"I would love to get out of this blasted wind." Touda agreed and followed Andy into the dojo.

He led them into one of the receiving rooms where Mai had already set up a tea service and snacks. Mai herself, however, was nowhere to be found. "Uh, help yourselves." Andy said. "I'm just gonna go look for Ma- for Shiranui-san."

He found her in her office again, just finishing up another phone call. She had been off and on that phone almost all morning and he was curious to know what was so important.

"They're here." He said.

"Already?" Mai tapped a stack on papers on the desk to straiten them. "They're earlier than I expected." She brushed past him and across the hall into the receiving room. "Sorry to keep you waiting." She smiled one of her most dazzling smiles. "I'm Shiranui Mai."

Andy followed her in and sat slightly behind her to her right, the position of a subordinate.

"I'm Touda Misato." The social worker gave a polite bow, bending half way to the floor. "Hajimemashite."

"Dozou yoroshiku." Mai responded with equal charm and gave a polite bow of her own. She could be quite charming when she wanted to be. "Well, Touda-san I'll get right to it. I will not release the boy into your custody." She said in a sweet but firm voice.

"What?" Said the social worker.

"What?" Said Andy in abject astonishment.

"Shiranui-san," Nakamura reasoned, "we have to take him or else you'll-"

"I am not releasing him to you," she continued, "because I am instead adopting him."

"What?" The social worker echoed her earlier exclamation.

"Mai…" Andy forgot that they were among company and that it was improper for him to address her so informally.

The ninja-woman extended the stack of papers she had taken from her desk to Touda-san. "I had my attorney draw these up last night. I trust everything is in order."

"I…" The social worker stuttered, flabbergasted. She studied the packet of papers Shiranui-san had passed her. (Had this been the real world and not a fan fiction of a video game it would have taken her and Andy years to formerly adopt Hokutomaru, but thankfully, things work much faster in Fantasy-verse.) "Yes…" the social worker agreed, "everything is in order." She pulled a pen from her pocket protector and signed that she approved of the adoption. "Congratulations, Shiranui-san, you are now the legal guardian of Shiranui Hokutomaru."

"Thank you."

(Ain't fan fiction great?)

…

Andy tactfully waited until Nakamura-kun and the social worker had left before asking Mai why she had adopted a child that just yesterday she had wanted to abandon to Child Services. She was stacking the used teacups and dishes on a tray to take back to the kitchen when he re-entered the receiving room after showing their guest's out. He knocked on the doorframe to announce his presence.

"Hi." He said.

"Hi." She replied.

"Can I come in?"

She gave a shrug of indifference that he took to mean it was okay. Andy entered the room fully and then stopped half a step behind her, contemplating whether or not he should hug her or if he should keep a respectful distance. The American ninja erred on the side of caution and opted not to touch her and instead offered, "Want me to take that?"

He held out his hands to take the dish-laden tray.

"I got it." She brushed past him and out of the room towards the kitchen. Andy followed.

"I, uh…" He fumbled with his words. "I'm curious, what changed your mind?"

"About what?" Mai deposited the dishes in the sink and began filling it with warm water.

"About Hokutomaru. Yesterday you were more than ready to just let Child Services take him. Now, today, you've adopted him."

"Technically, the Shiranui clan adopted him, I just signed the paper work."

Andy brushed off her distinction. "What made you do it?"

Mai shut off the running water and studied the suds that had formed over the surface if for no other reason than to avoid looking at him. "Your dad."

Andy was used to Mai not making sense, he was used to her being cryptic, confusing and just all around hard to understand but that one reply really flabbergasted him, so much so that he feared his Japanese was going bad. He was pretty sure that "Anata no 'tousan desu" didn't have any alternate translations but Jeff Bogard had been dead for well over a decade, he couldn't be influencing Mai's decisions from beyond the grave.

"Sorry." He said. "Japanese isn't my first language, it sounded like you said my dad?"

"Yes, your father." She confirmed in English this time. Turning to face him she asked, "What did you think when you learned that the boy didn't have any family?"

"I thought…" He paused, suddenly self-conscious. Would she think it was stupid? "I thought he was like me, like me and Terry."

She nodded. "And if he's like you, then you're like your father."

Mai backed away from the sink and stepped closer to him and for the briefest of moments Andy thought she was going to kiss him. But she didn't, she stopped just short of brushing her breasts against his chest and said, "I did it because you never got to know your father as a man, he died before you could grow up enough to do that. But maybe… maybe you could get to know him, to understand him by following his example. Sometimes I think that's the real reason why Terry adopted Rock and not because he's trying to atone for depriving the boy of _his_ father."

Andy thought about that for a second, he supposed it made a bit of sense. No, not a bit, it made almost perfect sense once he thought about it. Sometime he swore she knew him better than he knew himself.

"Mai?" He ventured timidly. "May I hug you?"

A small step back, a moment of hesitation; she was going to say no. That was fine, he supposed. She had adopted Hokutomaru for him but she still hadn't wanted the boy, it was perfectly fair for her to want her space and he was honor bound to respect that. Then her features softened, her hesitation melting away and she closed the distance between them.

"Just a hug." She whispered into the crook of his neck.

Andy wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him but not crushing her against his body as he would have liked to do. One hand reached up to stroke her long ponytail. Twirling a strand of her silky hair between his fingers he repeated, "Just a hug."

…

After Mai had pulled away awkwardly from their embrace she had suggested that he, Andy, take Hokutomaru out shopping. The boy needed decent clothing and couldn't keep wearing Andy's old hand-me-downs forever. So the blond ninja had taken the monkey boy into town for new clothes, good shoes and whatever else a boy his age might need. As well as fabrics so that Mai could make him a proper shinobifuku. If the boy was to be a member of the Shiranui clan he would need proper garb to train in the ninja arts, items like that were not sold in stores.

Unlike Mai, Andy detested shopping and found ways to get the task done as quickly and efficiently as possible. He felt uncomfortable in the cramped stores filled with racks of clothing that all looked the same except for their sizes, the sales women that would always come up and ask him for help with their obnoxious fake smiles and high pitched voices. Hokutomaru seemed to share his feelings, the boy looked completely out of sorts, like a dear caught in some poor bastard's headlights.

The both of them were more than happy to leave the main shopping district behind on their way to the textile district to get the fabric for Mai. She had ordered him to get bolt of a solid colored fabric for the boy and nothing more.

The woman whom owned the shop looked up and nodded when Andy entered with the boy and he much preferred her passive acknowledgement of him opposed to the obnoxious and overly cheerful sales women of the clothing shops. Of course, Mai had been dragging him there with her for almost as long as she could sew, so the woman knew Andy fairly well by now and probably knew she needn't bother with exaggerated greetings with him. The Shiranui dojo was a regular customer of hers and his business was practically ensured.

"New disciple?" The woman smiled when she saw Hokutomaru enter just half a step after Andy.

"Uh, yeah." Was the blond ninja's reply. He lead the boy to a corner of the store where the specific material Mai had requested was displayed and ordered him to pick a color.

"Mai-san didn't want to come herself?" The woman rested an elbow on the counter, a better position for casual conversation. "I remember she would spend hours in here trying to match the perfect pattern and color for you, Bogard-kun."

"Yeah, and I had to stand for hours while she debated the differences between blue and another blue." He likewise leaned against the counter and scanned the bolts of fabric for something Mai might like. She had instructed him to get only one, one for Hokutomaru and that was it but he knew how much she liked to sew. Dressmaking was one of her hobbies after all. She might like the gift of a pretty fabric with an intricate pattern.

"Oh, she just liked you to look your best." The woman continued. "You two were so cute, how she would fuss and faun and you'd adamantly refuse any of her suggestions. And she was right most of the time, you know. You would have looked so much better in a nice royal blue or a dark navy, really bring out those eyes of yours."

"I like white." Andy said as if this were something he'd had to repeat often. "Its easier to see blood and check for wounds."

"Yes, because everyone knows you can't _feel_ your own wounds." The woman huffed much like Mai would have, had she been there.

"Besides, white can be dyed any color." The blond ninja continued as if trying to justify his bland tastes. "Didn't Mai-san ever tell you about my dark green tunic. She likes to refer to it as my 'player 2' outfit."

The woman gave a small snort of good humor at his blatant illusion to the games and politely covered her nose and mouth with her hand. "Oh, Bogard-kun, you and that woman are truly made for each other."

She had meant it lightly, he knew. But her comment still made him feel just a little forlorn at the idea of losing the love of the only woman on Earth that was 'made for him'. His 'soul mate' if he believed in melodramatic bull-crap like that. But this woman knew nothing of their relationship trouble and didn't need to know. He put on a jovial face and said, "I don't know about that, but she's certainly the only woman who'd put up with me."

The two laughed, Andy forcing his laughter.

Hokutomaru came back, a bolt of fabric over his shoulder. He placed it on the counter and looked up at Andy. "Can I have this one?"

The blond fighter checked to make sure it was the right kind of fabric before nodding that it was okay.

"The whole thing, or just a few yards?" The woman asked.

"The whole thing." Andy confirmed. It was rare that Mai ever bought fabric by the yard but the woman was required to ask anyway. She turned to the register and began ringing them up. When she turned Andy caught site of a bright red fabric on the wall behind the counter, a bright red, the same shade as Mai's gi but shinier, like a satin or very fine silk and it was pattered with white cairns flying in all directions, their wings embroidered with a white thread that looked almost silver when the light hit it.

"What's that?" He asked when the woman turned back around to give him his total.

"Huh?" She looked behind her to see what he was pointing at. "Oh that, we just got that in. Isn't it beautiful? Ya know, I saw this and instantly thought of Mai-san. Maybe I can hold it for her until she next comes down and can see it for herself-"

"I'll buy it." Andy announced.

"Wha… buh…" Bogard-kun had never bought fabric before. Yeah, he was often sent my Mai-san to get fabric but it was always things she had specified and was always paid for on the Shiranui's credit. Andy Bogard did not buy fabric with his own money.

"The whole bolt." He reached a hand into the back pocket of the jeans he was wearing and pulled out his wallet. "Put the kid's threads on the Shiranui's tab, but I'm getting that."

She sighed, having known Mai and Andy for a long time now she knew how stubborn they both were. Besides, what businesswoman turns away good business? She finished the transaction for the boy's fabric and tallied up the cost of Andy's red and crane pattered silk. He cringed when she showed him the total but he passed her his debit card all that same.

…

"You didn't buy very much." Mai crossed her arms over her chest in displeasure when she saw what few bags they had returned with from their shopping trip. She also noted that Andy had gotten two bolts of fabric rather than just the one she had requested. What was so hard about shopping that Andy needed her to go with him to get it done right? She knew he could follow instructions just fine, so what then…?

"We got just what he needed." Andy defended. "Two warm-weather outfits and two cold weather outfits, pajamas, shoes and socks. Men don't need much else."

She looked as though she were about to reply with a witty or barbed remark but was cut off by an unexpected knocking on the dojo's main door. Mai sighed and crouched down to unwrap the protective paper that had been wrapped around the fabric he'd bought.

"Whatever." She muttered. "You just go answer the door, I'll get started on Hoku-chan's gi." The first bolt she managed to unwrap was the dark, coarse fabric the boy had chosen and it was this one that she lifted and took with her to the room that held her sewing cabinet and things.

The knock at the door was repeated and Andy turned to answer it as ordered.

"What should I do, Andy-san?" Hokutomaru asked.

The man shrugged then, looking to the shopping bags left in the entryway he said, "Take your things to your room, I suppose."

The boy nodded and hurried to gather his belongings and drag them to the room in which he'd been sleeping, the room designated as 'his room'.

There was a third knock at the door before Andy got to it. "I'm comin', I'm comin… Hello, my I help- Terry!?"

Andy was struck speechless at the sight of his elder brother standing on the doorstep, his travel bag slung over his shoulder and Rock waiting just a step behind him with luggage of his own in tow.

"Hey, Andy." He smiled. "What's up?"

…


	7. You Hopeless Romantic

Disclaimer: I don't own KOF or related characters. All is the property of SNK. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Seven: You Sappy Hopeless Romantic

"-Terry!?"

"Hey, Andy. What's up?"

Andy stood there gaping at his brother. Mai had said that he'd called yesterday but he was fairly sure that she would have told him if he'd call to say he was coming to Japan, or if she had mentioned it that he would have remembered. Something else must have happened between Terry's calling yesterday and arriving here today. Andy asked the only question that seemed to make sense to him:

"What are you doing here?"

"Standing here freezing." Rock muttered from behind the Lone Wolf. The irritable teen kicked a clump of snow for emphasis.

"Oh hush, you." The Terry said over his shoulder, then turning back to Andy, "I called Mai the other day, she didn't seem happy. You two never fight, well, I mean you don't have lover's spats; you're both fighters so you do fight. Anyway, the point is I came to see if everything was okay."

"Well we're…" Of course his brother would be worried about him. He hadn't bothered to call him, or any of his friends for that matter, since returning from the tournament in 2001. Of course Terry would be worried when, after hearing nothing from Andy for three months, he calls the Shiranui dojo and is greeted by an irate Mai. And that gave rise to another good question: '_Mai's been depressed for a while, but why was she angry?'_

"Can we come in?" The Howard boy asked from behind Terry.

Andy didn't _dislike_ the boy, but he didn't particularly like him either. He was just a kid, no older than seventeen but sometimes Andy would look at the Rock and almost see Geese Howard looking back at him. He wondered if Terry ever thought the same thing, if he ever looked at the kid and said, '_This is the spawn of the man who killed my father.'_

He doubted Terry ever did, or if he had he didn't anymore. His brother had been raising the boy since he was seven years old. Ten years was more then enough time for Terry to get over any prejudice he might have had against the boy, if any. Andy on the other hand was not so enlightened.

"It would be nicer to talk indoors." Terry admitted.

"Sure, come on in." Andy stepped aside to let the duo pass, reminding them to take their shoes off. Once they were all inside and had slipped off their shoes he asked, "So what was Mai angry about?"

"I have no idea." Terry admitted, he ran a hand through his thick blond hair and shrugged his heavy bomber jacket off his shoulders. "I was kinda hoping you could tell me. I've never seen her mad at you. Uh, some of the guys at Pao Pao are joking about it being a sign of the apocalypse. But Mai did say that if 'my own brother' wasn't going to tell me then she wasn't." He gave Andy a sidewise glance, fixing his brother with a piercing glare that seemed to say, _'Is there anything I should know?'_

So that was what this was about.

"I…" Andy faltered, unsure of how to explain it and not wanting to explain it at all with Rock in the room. "Let's put your things in a guest room."

He led the pair down the hall and indicated one of the larger gust rooms for them to share. Terry threw his travel bag hap-hazardly in a corner of the room while Rock took slightly more care in arranging his so that it would be out of the way.

"Help me carry bedding?" Andy muttered to Terry. The two left Rock to his own devices while Andy led Terry to the linen closet to gather the two futons, sheets and blankets that they'd need.

"Mai and I are sleeping in separate rooms." The blond ninja began still unsure about dropping the bombshell on Terry.

"What? Why?" Terry asked disbelieving. "Oh my god, is Mary right? Are you gay?"

"What? No! Why would- never mind." Andy promptly clamped down and shut up as they reentered the room and saw that Rock was busy unpacking what looked like a Play Station 2.

"The TV's still in the living room, right?" The boy asked.

"Yeah. Go knock yourself out."

The boy gathered up his cords and games and bounded out of the room before anyone could say '_Bam, head-shot'_. Once they were alone again Terry resumed his conversation with his little brother.

"Its okay, Andy, you can tell me. I'm your brother and I'll love you even if you are gay." A pause. "I mean platonicly love you, of course. No offence but, um… maybe I should start over."

"I'm _not_ gay!" A suddenly irate Andy roared.

"Okay, okay, so you're not gay." Terry conceded. "Then what's up with you and Mai?"

"We… we're just… you wouldn't understand." Andy jerked the bedding his brother held out of his arms and began arranging it and the futons on the floor. "You've never been in a _real_ long-term relationship."

"I have so!" Terry contested while his mind raced through the names of all his past girlfriends searching for one that had lasted longer then a single OVA.

"I don't know what you and Mary are but you're not lovers. Not really." The blond ninja said, not bothering to look up from his arrangement of the futons. "You're more like friends with benefits or something."

"That's not true!"

Andy was about to reply with something that would have most likely been very hurtful that he would have regretted the moment the words were out of his mouth but luckily for him, they were interrupted before he got the chance to. Hokutomaru entered the room holding Andy's bolt of red silk embroidered with white cranes. It was still wrapped in the brown paper he had carried it home it, but a small bit of red was peaking out of one end.

"Andy-san," The boy began, "what did you want me to do with this?"

Terry made an odd noise that might have been dismay or maybe just a hiccup, Andy wasn't sure.

"I'll take it." The blond ninja said, then, "Hang on a minuet, kiddo, there's someone I want you to meet. This is my older brother Terry. He and his ward are gonna be staying with us for a bit. Terry, this is Hokutomaru."

"Hajimemashite." The boy bowed politely to Terry.

"Uh, hi. I mean, dozo yoroshiku." Terry reached his hand out for a good old-fashioned American handshake but stopped mid-motion and switched to an awkward bow instead.

"Hokutomaru is the newest disciple of the Shiranui-ryu and Kappoujitsu styles." Andy explained. "I'm gonna start training him tomorrow."

"I see…" Terry fidgeted. He wanted to talk to Andy alone. Mai was mercurial as a general rule but yesterdays phone conversation with her had been unusually so, and Andy, whom was usually very blunt and didn't mince words was being cryptic and evasive. Neither of them was in their normal characters and it worried Terry a great deal.

"Hey kiddo," Terry addressed Hokutomaru, "you ever play a 12-bit fighting game?" That was usually the fastest and easiest way to get rid of a child, to tempt them with video games.

"What's that?" The boy asked. Behind the kid's back Terry saw Andy face-palm.

"It's a type of video game." Terry explained, not really all that surprised that a student of Andy's didn't know what a 12-bit fighting game was. Andy had never been up-to-date on his pop-culture and 12-bit games had fallen into 'cult-fandoms' almost a decade ago. "My kid, Rock, is setting his system up in living room right now. Why don't you go introduce yourself?"

The boy first looked to Andy for permission and after he nodded his consent the boy scampered off with a chipper "Okay."

Terry waited until the boy's footsteps were far enough down the hall to not be able to ear them distinctly before asking, "So, why aren't you and Mai sleeping together anymore?"

"We… we're working through some issues." Andy answered diplomatically. He had decided that now was not the time to unload all his troubles on Terry, least not all at once. His brother was going to be staying for, if the size of Rock's travel bag was any indication, a while and if that were the case then Andy preferred to brief him on it slowly. Mai had been so indelicate when she'd first told him, he would have preferred the courtesy of at least some sort of build-up to cushion the blow.

"What kind of issues?"

"Look, I don't feel much like talking about it right now." The blond ninja finished arranging the bedding for his guests and stood. "I gotta run and tell Mai that you're here and you're gonna be staying a while."

He left.

…

Mai was measuring out fabric when Andy entered, her back was to the door but she turned when he entered.

"Oh, good, you're here." She said. "Can you go and get Hokutomaru for me? I need to measure him before I can start."

"Uh, sure."

"Oh! And who was at the door? Anything important?"

"Terry." The blond ninja answered. "Terry and Rock are her and it looks like they plan to stay a while."

Mai let out an exasperated sounding sigh. "What is it you Bogard men have against calling ahead?"

"But you said he called yesterday." Andy countered.

"Yeah, but he didn't say anything about coming over for a visit." She neatly folded the fabric she had already cut and rolled up the rest of the bolt. "You never call when you come back to Japan, your brother never tells us when he's coming over for a visit… I bet ya Rock-chan doesn't know how to use the phone either."

"I…" Andy didn't really know what to say to that. It wasn't like her complaints weren't valid. Terry hadn't said anything of this visit of his in advance and it was a fact that he, Andy, almost never called Mai whenever he was returning to Japan. He even got a Ryu En Bu to the face for it once.

"Save it." She brushed past him and out of the room all the wile muttering to herself, "Ah, what am I going to do for dinner? Kuso, I'm gonna have to go grocery shopping tomorrow. Four damn _boys_ and then myself to feed. Grr. "

…

Andy later found his brother in the living room watching the two boys play the Play Station 2 release of the Battle Archives Vol. 1, with Rock playing as Terry and Hokutomaru playing as Andy. Hoku was new to the concept of a video game and so really had no idea what he was doing. Inevitably Rock won the match.

Andy had the misfortune of entering the room just as Rock attained his victory and had the displeasure of seeing a 12-bit version of his brother deal a Burning Knuckle to the face of a 12-bit version of himself. He watched himself fly to the other side of the screen, his death cry ringing from the speakers.

"Oh, hey Andy." Terry turned around just as his win quote was displayed on the screen. "Wanna play next match?"

"Video games are your thing, Niisan, not mine." Andy replied. He sat to watch the boys play as his brother had been doing. Hokutomaru had lost and so passed the controller over to Terry. He seemed rather relieved to be rid of it and Andy had to wonder that the boy had never even _seen_ a game controller before. He and his family must have been _very_ isolated up there on the mountain.

Terry switched his character before beginning his versus match with Rock. Andy now watched Terry Bogard (played by Rock) face off against Blue Mary (played by Terry). The image of his older brother's likeness getting its ass kicked by the likeness of his FWB (friend with benefits) was rather amusing to Andy but the diversion was short lived as Mai entered the room then and interrupted the game.

She planted herself firmly in front of the TV so as to get everyone's attention. Rock hurriedly pressed the pause button so as not to let the timer run out on the second round of his bout with Terry.

"I need a volunteer." She announced. "One of you has to go out and buy a few things if any of you want to eat tonight."

Terry sighed and set his controller to the side but Andy cut him off before he could volunteer.

"I'll go." He said rather abruptly. In total honesty the blond ninja felt that Terry really should be the one to go, after all, he was the one who just showed up with no real warning. But Andy knew that if Terry left then he would be the one to keep an eye on the kids and he'd rather not be left with the Howard boy if he could avoid it.

"Alright then." Mai stepped out from in front of the TV to let Rock and Terry continue their game undisturbed. She handed Andy a slip of paper. "Here's the list."

He accepted the piece of paper and turned to leave.

…

Latter, after Andy had left, Rock began trying to teach Hokutomaru how to use the game controller properly. He switched the game from the older Fatal Furys to a collection of even older arcade games, the type where the only buttons you had to worry about were forward and jump. He figured the simplification would help the primitive boy better understand the idea.

Terry took this opportunity, while both boys were preoccupied, to talk with Mai. She had always been mercurial in her moods and was prone to swinging from one emotion to another in a matter of mere seconds, but the other day's phone conversation had be more mercurial than most. He wanted to try and get her side of the story. She seemed a bit calmer today than she had over the phone, maybe if he asked nicely she would tell him what in the world was going on even though "his own brother" wouldn't.

He knocked on the door to her sewing room before entering. Mai sat on the floor mending a tare in her blue fighting gi, the one Andy jokingly referred to as her player 2 costume. She looked up when he entered.

"You or Rock have anything that needs to be mended give it to me now while I'm in the mood." She said. It had become a practice of Terry's (and later Rock's) to, whenever visiting the Shiranui dojo to bring any ripped, torn and possibly even shredded clothing for Mai to mend for them. Terry viewed it similar to a collage student bringing his dirty laundry home on the weekends for his mother to wash.

"Uh, no." Terry straitened the collar of his white t-shirt awkwardly. Mai was his sister-in-law in all but an official sense but sometimes he still felt uncomfortable being alone with her. Joe said it was because… well, never mind what Joe said it was because. "Can we talk?"

"Sure." Mai pinned up her work so she could come back to it latter and set the gi aside. "What about?"

"Andy." Terry answered shortly. "And you. Andy and you."

"Ah." She folded her hands in her lap and avoided his eyes. "What about Andy and I do you want to know?"

"Why you and Andy seem to be, for all intents and purposes, separated."

"We still live together." Mai contested. "We're not separated."

Terry crossed his arms over his chest as if to say, _'C'mon, I know you two.'_

"We're just working through some stuff. That's all. Its slow goings but we'll get there, we'll be back to some semblance of normal."

"Mai," he sat down in front of her and, taking her chin in his hand as Andy often did, forcing her to look at him, "Mai, you're practically my sister. Won't you let me be the overbearing big brother just this once and tell me what's going on? Neither you nor Andy have been acting yourselves recently. Even I can tell that this is something bigger than just 'some stuff'."

She pulled her face out of his grasp and once again looked away. "You and your stupid Hero Complex. You can't save everyone all the time, Terry."

"Maybe not, but I can at least try and save my little brother and his wife."

"We're not married." Mai said begrudgingly.

"Not legally or in any real _official_ sense, no." He agreed. "But as far as I'm concerned, in fact, as far as anyone who knows you or Andy or both you and Andy is concerned, you two have been married since 1992."

"Since we fought Krauser, huh? Not before?"

"I hadn't met you before that." Terry reminded her.

"I don't believe it."

"But its true." Terry insisted. "The first time you and I met was in Joe's hospital room after he got his ass handed to him by Krauser."

"Not that." Mai shook her head while suppressing a slight giggle. Terry probably did know what she had meant but had gone with a comical response anyway just to lighten her mood. "Andy has never thought of me as a wife."

"Wanna bet?" Terry deadpanned. "Trust me, babe, after traveling around the world with him during all those KOF tournaments I can say without a doubt that you are his _wife_."

All Mai had to say in response to that was, "'Babe'?"

"Sorry. The 'babe' thing is a reflex."

She couldn't help but let out a small chime of laughter at that. Sometimes, not often mind you but sometimes; Terry could be very cute (in a goofy older brother sort of way). Then her manner sobered and she said, "He never shows it around me."

"I bet he does, in his own awkward and convoluted way." He disagreed. "Andy's an idiot when it comes to interpersonal relationships. He's my brother and I love him, but he's an idiot. He probably just doesn't know how to show you how he feels."

"I still don't believe it." Mai insisted.

"Why?" Terry pressed. "What could he have done or said that was so bad that you'd kick him out of your room? Just tell me and I'll kick the crap out of him for you and then everything can get back to normal."

Mai gave a low laugh from deep in her throat that was without mirth. "Kick the crap out of him and everything will get back to normal… Oh, Terry, if only it were that simple."

"It might help if you clued me in on the problem." He reminded her.

Mai sighed and looked down. She must have found the pattern in the wood floor to be very fascinating because she didn't take her eyes off it when she said, "I was pregnant."

Terry's shock wrote itself all over his face but he erased it almost as soon as it was there and said, "That's great! Now I get it, Andy's probably just scared is all, he'll get over it. You two are gonna make great parents!"

Mai sat motionless for a moment. He must have misheard her. "No, Terry." She said softly. "I _was_ pregnant, now I'm not."

It did take him a moment's pause to fully comprehend, then, "Oh! Oh. Mai, I'm so sorry." He wrapped his arms around her in a comforting and brotherly hug but she pushed him away.

"I don't need any sympathy. I just want to move on."

"Right." Terry retreated to a respectful distance. "Well, this sure explains allot. I'm sorry, for both you and Andy."

"Don't be, he didn't know until recently."

Terry gaped at her in abject shock. "You mean you never told him that you were… until… Aw, jeez, Mai! No wonder you two are in such bad shape!"

"He wasn't around!" She protested in her defense. "I thought he wouldn't care, I thought he _didn't_ care."

"He cares." Terry emphatically assured her. "_Believe me_, he cares."

"He doesn't show it."

"He's never sure how." He reminded her. "You show enough affection for ten of him, he doesn't know how to respond in kind. You confuse him, but that doesn't mean he doesn't care for you. This… thing that you two are going trough, you'll get through it; I know you will. Andy loves you even thought he doesn't know how to show it and he's going to fight for you."

"What makes you so sure he will?"

"Because you're his match, Mai. Of all the people I've met and all the couples I've known, you two are the only pair that I honestly and truly think were put on this Earth for each other. It might be sappy to say and you're free to call me a hopeless romantic, but… you're his _soul-mate_."

"Yeah. You are a sappy hopeless romantic."

"Maybe. But Andy's not going to let go of you easily. He's going to fight tooth and nail to have you, to keep you." Terry once again took her chin in his hand and made her face him. "Because you're worth it." He placed a chase kiss on her forehead.

"What the Hell is this!?"

The two turned to find Andy standing in the doorway.

…

Mai's list wasn't very long considering. The dojo was fairly well stocked on most things. Her list mostly consisted of the western substitutes for Asian foods that couldn't be tailored to flatter western tastes or foods she knew either Rock or terry to like that they didn't stock normally. As worldly as Terry was he was still an American country boy. Andy really had no idea how that had happened, Terry being a country boy, they had both lived in cities all their lives. One of the great mysteries of SNK characterization, he supposed.

On the way home he had time to muse over the past few days' events. Allot had happened in the past three days. More, in fact, than had happened in the past three months. He and Mai had spoken more these three days past then they had in all the three months prior. It was amazing how a single event would change so much.

After the last tournament in '01 she's been so distant, Andy had wondered if she really even loved him at all anymore. He had wondered if she might leave him all together and find another man, one who might actually give her the things she wanted and not neglect her like he had. She had every right to leave him, but still… just the idea of Mai with another man made Andy's hackles rise. She was his, his woman, his lover, his match.

The idea of Mai with another man was unacceptable.

But to spite his feelings on the matter, it would be more than understandable if Mai chose to leave him for another. Kisaragi Eiji had always seemed to have a certain fondness for her; if Mai were to leave him Eiji would be the most likely candid to win her affections. Andy made a mental note to arrange an accident for the masked ninja.

Then he supposed King's younger brother Jan had had a crush on Mai but he was still just a kid and not very likely to tempt her favor. Maybe when he grew up a bit and Mai became an old cougar but not now. Andy didn't have to worry about Jan for another few years. Besides, King was the bartender at Pao Pao and he didn't want her to be poisoning his drinks because of a little disagreement between men.

Andy mentally ran through the other possible rivals for Mai's affections. She didn't seem to show any other particular favor to any of the other KOF regulars and aside from the previous two listed none seemed to show her any particular interest beyond the '_OMG! Big tits!'_ kind of attention that everyone showed her. If Mai was going to find herself another man he wouldn't come from the ranks of the KOF tournaments.

But if Mai did choose to leave him for another man, Andy would just have to make sure to burry him! And not figuratively either.

It wasn't all that late by the time he finally got home, the sun had already set but the winter sun set early anyway; it wasn't yet five o'clock. The sounds of Rock trying to teach Hokutomaru about the great mysteries of video games was the first thing he heard upon entering the house. He dropped the groceries off in the kitchen, sorting everything into its proper place, before going to check on the kids.

"Oi, Brat, where's Terry?" Andy asked. Rock had long since been 'Brat' to him, it was nicer than calling him the Howard Boy or Geese's Spawn and he thought that the boy preferred it as well.

The blond teen shrugged his shoulders in ignorance. "He left a while ago."

Andy sighed at the Howard boy's uselessness and decided to check in on Mai before continuing his search for Terry. He left the children to their own devices and headed in the direction of Mai's sewing room.

A snippet of conversation drifted to his ears through the shoji paper door as he neared it. Terry's voice saying, "…fight tooth and nail to have you, to keep you."

Andy slid the door open just in time to witness his brother take Mai's face in his hand and turn her towards him.

"Because you're worth it." And Terry kissed her gently on the forehead.

"What the Hell is this!?" Andy all but shouted in utter disbelief. He threw the door open the rest of the way and entering the room fully, glaring at his brother with a mixture of betrayal and abject loathing.

Of all the KOF regulars he never would have though that his own brother…

…

(A/N: I'd like to end this chapter by kindly asking any and all authors in the KOF and Fatal Fury fandom's to please write some Andy/Mai fictions. At the moment I'm the only Andy/Mai shipper and it get's boring having nothing but your own fan fictions to read. )


	8. Nominal Congress

Disclaimer: I do not own KOF or related characters. All is the property of SNK. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Eight: Nominal Congress

"What the Hell is this!?"

Terry released Mai and took a step back. He had realized only an instant after Andy had arrived how this scene might appear to his little brother. His relationship with Mai was on shaky ground and then to walk in on his older brother kissing her, albeit on the forehead and very chastely at that, but distinctions like that would be lost on the impetuous ninja in the shock of the moment. At the moment all he would see would be a friend, a _brother_ attempting to seduce his woman. And the worst part of it was that any explanation Terry could give at this very moment would sound like nothing more than an excuse.

"Andy, I…" But that didn't mean he wasn't go to_ try_ and explain.

"Outside!" The younger man cut him off vehemently. Terry sputtered at a loss. Was he being kicked out of the Shiranui dojo? But the dojo was Mai's; Andy didn't have the authority to kick someone out, did he? Luckily, Terry didn't stay confused for long because upon seeing his brother's lack of movement Andy repeated, "You, me, outside _now_!"

"Now hold on just a-" Mai's interjected protest was silenced with a look. An odd mixture of anger and betrayal with hints of melancholy played over Andy's features and gave Mai reason to pause.

Terry followed his brother out of the room and through the kitchen door into the snow-covered courtyard outside. He wanted to explain to him what he had just seen, but he knew his brother and knew that he wouldn't listen until he had burned off his initial shock and anger, and so remained tactfully silent.

All that being said, it still hurt like a bitch when Andy turned around suddenly and socked him hard in the jaw. Terry staggered backwards, one hand going up to cradle his lower mandible while his tong felt around to figure out what was suddenly rolling around loose in his mouth. The Lone Wolf spat out one of his back molar teeth, it left a bloody stain on the pure white snow where it landed.

"You back-stabbing, home-wrecking son of a bitch!" Andy roared.

"You've got the wrong idea." Terry insisted.

Of course Andy didn't listen, wasn't listening. All he knew was what he saw and what he saw was his brother kiss the woman that was _his_, kiss her after telling her how he was going to fight to have her. Well, Andy was going to make it as arduous and gruesome a fight as he could! Mai was his, his woman, his lover, his match and he wasn't going to loose her to anyone, especially not the man that he'd been spending the past few years training his hardest to beat.

"Zan-ei Ken!" The American ninja dashed forward, his elbow outstretched like a lance.

Terry blocked the hit but did not return the blow; he was going to keep his defenses up. If Andy wanted to fight, if Andy needed a fight, then he would let him fight. But Terry was not about to get his little brother all bloodied-up over a silly misunderstanding. Andy had always been too emotional for his own good; Terry knew this better than anyone (except maybe for Mai). Once his brother was calm they could talk, until then Terry would let him vent as much as he needed.

"Andy stop!" Mai had followed them out. She knelt on the porch edge pulling a pair of shoes onto her feet. "What has gotten into you?"

Andy ignored her, so focused was he on his enemy. Not his opponent, this fight was not recreational, this fight was to defend his mate and territory from a usurping and lonely Wolf. In this fight Terry was not an opponent but an _enemy_. The blond ninja flipped backwards into a sort of handstand before launching himself through the air at his enemy.

"Kuuha Dan!"

Terry blocked the move as he had the Zan-ei Ken but once again did not take advantage of his brother being left wide open and off balanced by the failed attack. He knew that if he were to continue this way it would only make Andy even angrier but the Lone Wolf wanted his brother to burn off just a little more of his rage before he began fighting back in any sort of serious sense. There was something bothering him about the way Andy was fighting and Terry needed to observe his offensive a bit longer before he could figure out what it was.

Andy was using all the same moves he usually did. It wasn't the technique he was using that was strange, but rather the _way_ in which he was using it, the way he was fighting. Andy's Shiranui-ryu and Kouppojitsu taught him to measure his movements. They taught him to make every attack fast, precise and carful, to do the maximum amount of damage with minimal force. But now… now he seemed to be throwing his entire body into them with little to no restraint.

"Both of you stop!" Mai had finished putting on her shoes and was now trying her damnedest to separate them. "What in the Hell is going on with you two?"

Andy grabbed her arm and gently but forcefully moved her to the side and out of the way. The only explanation he bothered to give was a deep rumbling growl, "You're mine."

He set his feet in a solid stance to build his ki, pushing it to the max before bringing his hands together and launching a ball of pure blue fighting spirit at Terry. "Hishou-ken!"

Instead of blocking Terry jumped over the attack, any attempt to block that would have resulted in second and possibly third degree burns and the Lone Wolf really didn't feel like dealing with that tonight.

Mai, sick of being ignored or pushed to the side, rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Andy's waist and locked her hands around her wrists so that he couldn't escape. But more importantly, so that he couldn't move or fight anymore.

"Will you just _stop_!" Needless to say she was very annoyed by this point. "You get home and suddenly want to kill Terry. What in the Hell is going on?"

"Don't defend him." Andy hissed and tried to struggle out of her grip but she held firm and refused to release him.

"He's your _brother_."

"He can't have you!" The blond ninja roared. "You're mine and he can't have you! I won't let him. He has everything else! He's the better fighter, he's more widely respected, more renowned, the _better man_. But you, you're mine; you're all I've got and I won't let him take you from me too!"

"What in the Hell are you talking about?" She asked disbelieving. "Terry's not trying to take me from you, you idiot."

"Yeah, I don't want her." Terry chipped in. "No offence, Mai."

"None taken." Terry was nice, but she didn't want him either and wasn't at all insulted by his statement. She rested her cheek on Andy's shoulder. "Now what's this about?"

"Don't play dumb!" He snapped. "I saw you, I heard him say that he was going to fight so he could have you and keep you because you're worth it and then he kissed you!"

"Wha, is that it?" Mai almost giggled but luckily was able to hold it in. "Oh, Andy, he was talking about _you_! He said _you_ would fight to keep me you great idiot." She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder and hugged him tighter, the action causing her breasts to press themselves against the solid wall of his back. "You're such a dunce."

"But he kissed you!"

"Like kissing a sister." Terry supplied.

Andy sputtered for a few moments before taking a deep calming breath and let their words sink in. Perhaps he had overreacted. Had he seen his brother kiss Mai like that at any other time he probably wouldn't have thought anything of it, but now… The way he and Mai had been acting towards one another, how distant she's been these past few months… Andy had been in doubt of her love for him. He felt ashamed of how easily he had jumped to the conclusion that he had.

"Let me go, Mai." Andy sighed. "I'm calm."

She reluctantly withdrew her arms from around his waist and pulled away. Mai took a step or two back from Andy to give him his space but he grabbed her hand at the last minuet, making her pause.

"Thank you." He said.

"For what?" She blinked in abject confusion. She hadn't done all that much.

Andy lifted her hand to his lips and placed a chase kiss upon it. "Just for being you."

Mai didn't quite know how to respond to that. Andy just about never said pretty things to her. He was not the romantic type. All those years she had been showering him with affection he'd never shown any in return (aside from sleeping with her that is). What made him suddenly start now? Was it because he had thought that he might have lost her just now? Or maybe because of how distant she'd been over the last few months…

Terry made an odd croaking sound that might have been surprised, or perhaps shocked or maybe utter dumbfoundedness. Andy _never_ showed affection toward Mai! Oh sure he showed his affection for the spunky red ninja in other way, actions that he wasn't aware he did but spoke volumes to those who knew him and those around him. But never anything strait forward, never to her face; he never showed his affection to her publically.

And yet, Terry had just witnessed him do exactly that.

Mai blushed slightly, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. How was she supposed to respond to that? '_Thank you for being you'_? What was that even supposed to _mean_? Luckily she didn't have to formulate a response, she was saved by Rock, with Hokutomaru close behind, dashing out to see what was going on.

"I heard shouting." The teen explained. "Y'all alright?"

"Just fine." Andy crossed his arms over his chest and turned away from the concerned teen.

"Just a little surprise-spar." Terry explained with a smile. He bent down and retrieved his discarded tooth from the snow.

"Hn." Andy once again took Mai by the hand and, brushing past the Howard boy and Hokutomaru, went back inside.

Rock watched Andy lead Mai back inside, something was off with that picture. Wasn't it usually supposed to be Mai leading Andy? He turned his attention back to his legal guardian. "Surprise-spar, huh?"

"Yeah." Terry popped his tooth back in his mouth and attempted to maneuver it back into its socket with his tong. After a few moments of this, he realized it was a pointless endeavor and spat the tooth back out, this time leaving it in the snow where it dropped.

"What's a 'surprise-spar'?" Hokutomaru asked, blinking in confusion while glancing between Rock and Terry.

"We'll talk." Rock patted the younger boy on the shoulder.

…

Once they were inside Mai disentangled herself from Andy's firm grasp and turned to him. "I can't believe you thought that me and _Terry_…!"

"I thought…" Andy tried to explain but faltered. "Never mind what I thought. You know what I thought."

Mai shook her head. She reached out her hand, touching his cheek and turning him to face her. "Andy…" She said gently then her demeanor changed. "With _Terry_!? _Really_? Go ahead and set me up with the kid from Mighty Max, why don't ya? Ugh!"

"Mai, I… The kid from Mighty Max?" He paused, as his mind finally possessed her mid-90s reference. He snorted and had to cover his nose and mouth with his hand to keep from spraying mucus on her. "Oh, man! He _is_ the kid from Mighty Max! Especially back when he used to wear that cap all the time…"

Mai smiled. It was good to see Andy laugh again. She hadn't seen him laugh in over three months and she found that her own spirits were lifted by it. The red-ninja allowed herself to indulge in it as well.

"I haven't heard you laugh in a long time." Mai finally said.

"I haven't had a reason to." He answered.

"Neither of us have." She took his hand in hers again and looked him directly in there eyes. "I'm sorry."

"What for?"

She shrugged her shoulders elegantly making her breasts bounce with the motion. "For nothing in particular, for everything, for not telling you, for the misunderstanding just now. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too." Andy pulled her closer to him, wrapping one arm around her waist while the other still held her hand. "I'm sorry for being a selfish ass, I'm sorry for putting you second to my own wants and desires, for everything that I have or haven't done for you, I'm sorry."

Mai rested her head on his chest. "So, what now? Are we fine then? Is everything between us as it was?"

"No." He disentangled his hand from her and reached up to stroke her air. "But we're better. We're far better than we have been these past few months."

Andy thought momentarily about moving the hand he had around her wais down to her ass. It had been so very long since he'd been aloud the privilege of touching the more intimate parts of her body and he felt that he deserved some reparation for the shock to his system she and Terry had given him. Ideally he'd prefer some long and sweaty make-up sex but he knew_ that_ wasn't going to happen any time soon. He decided to be aggressive but not lewd.

Instead of grouping her ass, the hand that was stroking her hair pulled out the ribbon that was holding her pony-tail. Her thick umber and sienna main came tumbling down her back and around her shoulders in elegant waves. She pulled away in sudden confusion.

"What are you-?"

Her question was cut off when he pulled her back to him and pressed his lips against hers. As much as he wanted to just pin her up against the nearest wall and just _take her_, he also knew that it would just cause them more problems later on. He erred on the side of caution and began with a kiss. A soft affectionate kiss, nothing demanding or intruding. His lips were parted slightly so she knew that she was welcome to deepen it but Andy did not press the issue.

Mai's tong darted out experimentally and he took it as a good sign, holding her closer to him and pressing his pelvis, pressing his erection against her inner thigh. That was when she ended the kiss and pulled away, pushing against his chest to try and break the iron embrace in which he held her.

"I'm sorry, Andy." Mai turned her back to him, unable to watch his disappointment. "I can't. I just… I'm sorry."

Disappointment was an understatement. He was here now; he was staying at the dojo rather than going to train elsewhere for _her_. She knew that. She knew that he needed some form of release; she had walked in on him. She knew that he wanted her, and yet… She still denied him. Andy's patience was beginning to wear thin. After the evening's little misunderstanding he would have thought that she'd be more willing… he'd take apology sex, though he would prefer make-up sex, and finally have their relationship back the way it was. Why was she being so stubborn? He knew it wasn't because she was frigid; Shiranui Mai was anything but frigid.

"Mai…" Andy stepped forward and wrapped his arms about her shoulders and resisted the almost instinctual urge to grope at her breasts. He trailed kisses from her neck, just below her earlobe, down to the junction between shoulder and neck (only because the collar of her robe prevented him from going further). "I want you." He whispered to her collarbone.

"Andy, I…"

One hand reached up to pull the collar of her kimono away just enough to give him access to her shoulder while the other hand drifted downward to slither between the folds of her robe, seeking entry. Andy sucked on the smooth, evenly tanned skin of her exposed shoulder while his hand sough the juncture between her thighs. She leaned back into him when his fingers brushed against the outside of her panties. Her soft moan at the touch was as much permission as he needed.

Andy pulled the material of her underwear aside to better tease the sensitive bud that resided there. A slight wave of wetness was his reward and only encouraged him further.

"You're still so sensitive." He muttered, nibbling on her ear.

"Andy…" She breathed and tried to pull away, but he held her fast, refusing to let go. "Andy, we're in the middle of the hall!"

He paused in his ministrations; they were in a rather public part of the house. It wouldn't due to have Terry or the Howard boy walk in on them in the midst of fucking up against a wall. Not to mention that Hokutomaru had enough emotional trauma as it was after the death of his family and having to survive on his own out in the wild, he didn't need to witness them humping in the middle of the hallway like gorillas. Andy sighed.

"You're right, of course."

He let Mai go, but as she was pulling her kimono back into place he seized her again, lifting her up and carrying her bridal style into the master bedroom. He had been pent-up for a while and wanted release and was tired of all the excuses and everything else that always seemed to keep getting in the way. Opening the sliding door was awkward with her in his arms but the blond ninja managed.

"Andy, what are you…?"

She struggled out of his grip only after they were safely inside her bedroom.

Andy shut the door behind them and leaned against the shouji frame, admiring her disheveled appearance. Her hair, wiled and tossed, hung around her shoulders and framed her face, one stray strand falling forward to curl between her breasts. Her kimono hung louse about her shoulders, threatening to reveal her round succulent breasts. She was beautiful!

Andy stalked towards her with the slow deliberate swagger of a predator and Mai found herself longing to be devoured by him. It had been so long and she loved him so much… Her body hummed with the desire to feel him once more, to take him inside her and ride him, pushing them both to a gasping and sweaty climax. But her desire battled with her uncertainty and insecurities. She had promised herself that she wouldn't give in to her base nature ever again, not unless he agreed to marry her. They were still not married.

"Mai…" He grabbed her wrist and pulled her to him, crushing her body against the solid wall that was his own. "… I need you."

She wanted to give in at that moment, to lean in and accept the kiss that he was about to bestow upon her lips, to pull him down with her onto the futon and make love as they had in the past. But she couldn't, she wouldn't. Instead Mai turned her back toward him for a second time that evening.

"I'm sorry, Andy." She said. "I just… its still to soon."

"Three months is a long time for a man to go without sex, Mai."

"Bullshit! You've gone longer, I know." She hissed back at him. His extended training journeys lasted far longer than three months, some even lasting as long as a year and often averaging on six months.

"Longer away from you, yes." He agreed, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close in an undemanding hug. "But here, with you… with the sight of your body, the sound of your voice, the scent of your hair…" he breathed deeply and nuzzled her head, "… with knowing that you're here and that you're mine but never being able to touch you, to _have_ you… Six months lived like that, Mai, is torture."

She wanted to shoot back with something jibe and witty but nothing came to mind. Truth be told, she knew how he felt. She had also gone just as long without sex on his long and extended absences. But here, now, with him living at the dojo and her not touching him, feeling him, _having_ him… it _was_ torture. Women have needs too and Mai had been denying hers these past three months for fear of once again finding herself pregnant and abandoned. That fear still held strong but that didn't mean that she didn't want some form of sexual relief from him.

Mai placed her hands on his shoulders and lightly pushed him down, not violently, just enough so that he would take the hint. Andy looked a little confused for a second but obediently sank to his knees. The kunoichi had to sigh and shake her head, she took sunk to her knees and pushed Andy the rest of the way down so that he lay on his back with half his body hanging off the futon.

"Like this, moron." She muttered.

"Sorry."

She started to undo the belt of the kaki slacks he'd worn out shopping, unfastening the buckle before unbuttoning and unzipping the pants the rest of the way. She pulled the material off his hips and left it bunched up around his knees. She then ran her hand over his crotch, teasing the sizable bulge beneath his tighty-whiteies.

"Now then…" She said, gently stroking his still contained erection. "What do you want from me?"

Andy's answer was to reach out and try to pull the bow out of her obi, effectively undressing her as well, but Mai batted his hand away.

"Use your words."

"You…" The frustrated blond ninja groaned. "I want you."

"I'm right here." She gave a coy but evil smile while she continued to stroke his stiff and quivering member through the material of his underwear. That smile made him think of her mouth and how good it would feel around his cock.

"Please, Mai…"

"'Please' what?"

Her hand felt so good, but it was a cruel teasing sort of good. The kind that promised more to come but didn't deliver. The kind that showed a man how good a woman could feel and made him crave more. He wanted more than just her hand. He wanted her mouth, her breast, he wanted her whole body.

"Suck me?" He pleaded.

Another coy/evil smile. God her lips were beautiful! He wanted to shove his dick between those lips and blow his load down her throat. And then she spoke again: "What are you gonna do for me?"

"Fuck you." He promised.

"Mmm, that's what _you_ want." She rested her head on his hip, her mouth so very close to his cock that he could feel her breath on him through the material of his underwear. If only he weren't wearing underwear he could just shift his position and be in her mouth… "I don't want that just yet."

Andy let out an uncharacteristic whimper. He was so horney and frustrated. This was one side of Mai that he did not miss, the evil tease. Her aggressive and domineering tenancies were quirky and fun (and sometimes a little scary) but that was what made he so exiting. But this part of her, the irritating teas, that cruel, evil, seductress... But if he refused to play along, tried to take control and assert his dominance, she'd just restrain him some how and start all over again. So he had no choice but to play along.

"What _do_ you want?"

"Hm, well…" Mai held his hand, intertwining her fingers with his. She pulled his hand over to her mouth and sucked on his middle finger as if it were a penis, running circles around it with her tong. It made him want her to suck his actual organ all the more. "You're so skilled with your hands…"

She released his hand and waited. He knew what to do; she loved his fingers (almost as much as his actual cock).

"Swing your ass around." Andy muttered. She wanted him laying down so she should be the one to move and give him better access for what she wanted him to do for her.

Mai was more than happy to oblige. Un-straddling his legs, she swung around so that her tail-section was facing him. Not exactly a 69, Andy refused to do 69s if he was the one on bottom. Mai had the particular talent and/or rare ability of being able to cum like a faucet. Whoever said female ejaculation was a myth was either inexperienced, an idiot, or just plain lying.

Andy bunched up the material of her kimono, pushing it up as far out of the way as her obi would allow before sliding his hand back down between her legs. The moment Mai felt his hand on her she pulled away the restrictive material of his underwear and licked him experimentally.

The blond ninja sighed when he felt her warm, wet tong on him, content that he was at last going to get the relief that he so desperately craved. Andy teased the delicate bud of her clit, causing a fresh wave of warm wetness to trickle down her legs before slipping his middle finger inside her. He was rewarded by a soft moan and her mouth closing around his stiff member.

She was so warm and wet and oddly tight around his finger. He wiggled the digit forward and back causing another wet wave that began to pool around her knees. She gave another moan of appreciation; the action causing his cock to feel almost like it was vibrating inside her mouth.

Mai ran circles around his shaft with her tong while her lips massaged his base; he was so deep in her throat… She felt so good around his cock, she felt so tight around his finger. Andy imagined how good she'd feel if he could enter her properly. If he could slip inside her warm and receptive body, she was already drooling to have him and he wanted her so much…

"Mai..." Forming complete sentences was always a challenge when they were together like this. It was like that portion of his brain shut off and all his mind wanted to focus on was how good she felt and how good she was making him feel.

Upon hearing her name muttered so softly in a labored voice she assumed that he was close to his climax and intensified her attentions to his member. Quickening her pace while also adding an up and down motion that he always seemed to enjoy. His body tensed beneither her, his hand inside her pausing distractedly in its ministrations while his other hand gripped the side of the futon on which he was only partially laying.

"M-mai…" This time it was a gasping sigh. Andy's clinched fist gripping the side of the futon tightened till his knuckles were almost white before relaxing again as a wave of pleasure washed over his entire body, emanating from his loins and traveling up his stomach, his spine, through out his whole body. He relaxed back onto the bed, completely spent and happy.

Mai spat out his thick and sticky load. That was the part of giving fellatio that she hated the most, the moment when he would cum. Not only was it thick and sticky like snot, but it tasted _terrible_! Pre-cum was okay, pre-cum tasted fine, but his actual ejaculate was awful! She spat the offensive substance out on the floor and used the sleeve of her kimono to wipe her tong in a vain attempt to rid herself of the vile aftertaste.

"Sorry…" Andy muttered in a sleepy voice.

Mai didn't care much for his apologies. His hand's motions inside her had stopped and she was left unsatisfied with a bad taste in her mouth.

Andy sat up, expending most of his reserve energy to do so and wrapped an arm around Mai's exposed shoulders. He pulled her back down with him so that they were both laying half on the bed and half off.

"Lay with me." He whispered into her ear.

Mai laid there with him, the little spoon to his big spoon and lamented her lack of an orgasm. She shouldn't have pushed him to his climax so soon. Once he came everything was over and that sucked major donkey balls. It was so not fair!

"Thank you." Andy nuzzled her hair affectionately.

She wanted to respond with something along the lines of, '_If you were really thankful you'd make me cum in return, bitch!_' But she didn't. Instead she just laid there and wondered if he would be insulted if she started fingering herself next to him. He probably would.

Andy snaked one arm be neither her shoulder, holding her closer to him while his hand groped at her breast and the other wrapped around her hip looking to resume its earlier ministrations. Mai was more than willing to accommodate him and parted her legs enough for him to slip his finger back inside, two fingers this time.

He fluttered his fingers back and forth in a "butterfly" motion that he knew drove her mad and was pleased when she moaned low and deep from the back of her throat. More warm wetness flowed out from between her legs and pooled on the futon between them, staining her kimono and what little bit of his pants he still wore.

Andy intensified his motion, slipping a third finger inside her and quickening his motions. The hand that gripped her breast traveled downward to massage her exited clit while his other hand still worked inside her. The double stimulus was almost to much and Mai couldn't help but let out a small gasping moan that bordered on a scream as he pushed her to a shuddering climax, her pleasure flowing out from between her legs and soaking the part of the futon on which they were laying as well as part of the hardwood floor.

Mai's body relaxed and she leaned against Andy in contentment.

…


	9. Good Morning

Disclaimer: I don't own King of Fighters, Fatal Fury or related characters; such is the property of SNK. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

The Sweet Far Thing

Chapter Nine: And What a Good Morning It Is

Terry figured that Andy and Mai would need about an hour to make up, or whatever they were calling it, but after an hour and a half passed the rest of the guys started to get hungry (although, some of them were more vocal about it than others). After two hours had passed and neither Andy nor Mai had returned to see to their guests Rock offered to whip something up and Terry agreed that that was probably a good idea. Their hosts were most likely indisposed for the remainder of the evening.

Hokutomaru gave a slight objection thinking that Mai-Oneesama might be upset with them if they ate without her and Andy but he was quickly overruled and (after smelling the irresistible scent of food) sat down to eat with Terry and Rock.

Rock wasn't exactly a gourmet chef, but out of the three of them, he was the best cook and had been cooking the meals for Terry and himself since he had been tall enough to reach the stove without the aid of a stepping stool. The teen didn't whip up anything fancy; he wasn't into exotic flavors or showy presentations. Food was food; it all went to the same place, no sense in putting more effort into it that you had to. He just fried up some of the bacon that Andy had just bought and toasted some bread. With a few slices of tomato and leaves of lettuce they each had a delicious and filling BLT for dinner.

Hokutomaru was a little thrown at first. The concept of just picking up a hunk of something and attempting to eat it like that was a new one to him. Everything he'd ever eaten prior had been cut into small enough portions to be able to pick-up and eat with chopsticks. These 'sandwiches' were strange and messy to him. Still, he couldn't argue with flavor, they did taste good and to spite his misgivings ate his helping gladly.

…

Andy woke to the feeling of cold air, stiff muscles and sticky sheets. It was still dark when he looked around him, probably the middle of the night. He was laying half-on/half-off Mai's futon, his pants still bunched around his knees. This accounted for the chill he felt. He was still on his side, as he had been when he had fallen asleep, his hips just missing the softness of the futon and instead laying on the hardwood floor. This and the odd angle he had been laying probably accounted for his stiff muscle pain. And finally, Mai lay next to him, slightly more on the futon that he was and still fast asleep. That accounted for the stickiness.

Andy gently, very gently so as not to wake her, snaked his arms under her sleeping form and lifted her bridal style into his arms. Trying his best to stay balanced, he nudged the blankets out of the way with his foot and laid her back down on the futon properly. He tucked the blankets up around her chin, making sure she was warm before turning to leave.

Then he paused.

What would she think when she woke up tomorrow morning to find him missing from her bed? Would she think she'd been abandoned again? She did have plenty abandonment issues thanks to him already. But if he stayed the night and slept with her in her bed would she think that he was trying to push her to fast? That he was trying to force her into something that she wasn't yet ready for?

Andy decided that it was probably best for him to stay the night. If Mai woke up to find him gone the next morning she would think that he had just used her for his own sexual gratification and then left; the standard and despicable 'fuck and chuck'. But if he stayed, yes, she might think he was trying to push her back into a sexual relationship sooner than she was ready, but at least it showed that he cared. That he still wanted to be with her and that he wasn't going anywhere.

Andy pulled his underwear back up around his narrow hips and struggled out of his kaki slacks before crawling into bed with Mai. And then groaned in annoyance. Of course, he would be the one to get the side of the bed with the wet spot. He cuddled up as close to Mai as he could without magically fusing himself into her body in an attempt to get away from the wet blankets that now covered him. It was a lousing battle but he decided that it must be the Universe punishing him. For what he had no idea, maybe everything maybe nothing. It was just easier to put up with if he felt he deserved it somehow.

…

It took Andy a moment or two after waking to remember why he wasn't waking up alone but instead with Mai's warm and soft body pressed against his. It had been a few months since he had accepted her request to move back into his old room, the one he occupied while still training under her grandfather. He understood her desire for abstinence and he understood why she had been so against any sort of actual penetration during their… intimate encounter last night. But for the first morning in a long time, Andy woke-up feeling content and almost happy.

He rolled over and wrapped his arms around her still sleeping form, and was pleased by the soft moan she gave in her sleep. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply. She smelled of sandalwood and perspiration… and of him. The scent of his own sweat and musk permeated her skin and hair and Andy was sure that her scent clung to him as well.

The morning air was chilly and crisp and Andy was perfectly content to remain under the warm blankets with Mai's warm body pressed against his. It was like the morning after they had exchanged virginities (without the fear of Hanzo-sensei finding out and killing him, of course).

Mai rolled over in her sleep, or rather attempted to roll over but only succeeded in rolling into the solid wall that was called Andy Bogard.

"What are you doing here?" She asked groggily and then yawned. "Ugh, this bed smells like sex."

"Hmm." Andy made a non-committal noise at her statement. Yes, the bed smelled of sex, that was usually what happened when two people have sex on a bed, or in any area for that matter.

"I would have though you'd have dragged Terry out of bed by now for a spar or something." She continued.

"Maybe I wanted to stay here."

"Pussy. You just don't wanna get out from under the warm covers."

"There's that too." He nuzzled her nose and pulled her closer to him.

Mai placed her hands on his chest and pushed them apart. "We need a shower."

"Together?" Perhaps he sounded just a little to chipper when he asked that because Mai shook her head.

"No, you'll just get horney and then you'll get me horney and we'll just have sex."

"I don't see a down-side to that scenario."

"Last night was fun, Andy-"

"Which is exactly why we should do it again!"

"- but we need to take it slow. _I _need to take it slow." Mai took his face in her hands and gazed directly into his eyes when she said, "I don't ever want to find myself with another unplanned pregnancy and you miles away in some god forsaken corner of the Earth where they don't get cell service and there's no such thing as a pay phone."

Andy sobered up quickly.

"I know." He said, pulling her hand away from his face by the wrist and kissing the juncture between her thumb and index finger. "I don't want that either. That's why I'm staying here."

"I wish I could believe that."

"Believe whatever you want." He shrugged. "It won't change the fact that I… that you're very important to me."

"Oh, go shower." She shoved him out of bed and into the frigid morning air.

Mai's bathroom was tiled in pink and white, a color scheme that had always grated on Andy's nerves, but this morning it seemed soft and feminine rather than frothy and obnoxious. The towels were likewise a soft pink with a modest floral pattern; he brought one of these to his face and ran the soft fluffy fabric across his cheek. There was a white porcelain fish that sat at the edge of the sink and served as a toothbrush holder, Andy used to hate that stupid fish but now he wished that his own toothbrush were resting in it once again.

He approached the tub, turned on the shower and stood back for a moment or two while the water heated up. He stripped out of his shirt and underwear and threw them into the bright pink-painted wicker laundry hamper. The water was just below scalding when Andy finally stepped into the shower so he added more cold to the stream to balance it out before stepping underneath it completely. The warm shower was a welcome reprieve from the morning chill.

Andy lathered up with a bar of sandalwood scented soap, Mai's preferred scent. He knew he would smell like her for the rest of the day and for some reason that thought made him smirk with a feeling of righteous possessiveness. Mai was his, she had always been his and she always would be, she was as much his as he was hers. Loath though he was to admit it, they had a very co-dependent relationship. He didn't think he would have been able to live not knowing that he always had Mai to come back home to.

…

Mai lay in her warm bed listening to Andy shower in the adjoined bathroom. The sound of water tinkling on the porcelain tile was muffled by the closed door but the sound was still evident and she listened with only half an ear, her mind straying.

It was nice knowing that Andy still needed her, still _wanted_ her in all possible meanings the word could have. It was gratifying to know that he still found her attractive, as evident from last night's little tryst. It was comforting to know that he wanted to be with her, as evident by the fact that he had stayed here with her at the dojo rather than leaving to train elsewhere. And it made her happy that he was finally being just a little bit more open about their relationship. The old Andy Bogard would never have taken her hand in front of Terry, his own family. Andy detested public displays of affection for some reason, Mai had just never quite figured out why.

She just wished he could have reformed sooner, become this way earlier and saved them both allot of grief.

She heard the running water suddenly stop and assumed that he had finished. Standing, Mai shrugged off the wrinkled and dirty kimono she had been wearing yesterday that they hadn't really managed to her all the way off her before fucking or falling asleep.

The morning chill was a bit of a shock to her warm skin and goose bumps sprang up all down her arms while her nipples hardened. Still, it did drive away the last remnants of sleep that had been clinging to her mind; Mai was wide-awake now. The door opened and Andy stepped out wearing her fluffy pink bathrobe, it did _not_ look good on him.

But she only gave it a passing though as she quickly switched places with him, dashing past her pink-clad blond lover into the steamy warmth of the bathroom. There was a reason she had made him shower first, now the room was nice and toasty warm.

…

Andy crossed the hall to his own room to change into a clean tunic and trousers before making his way to the room Terry and Rock were sharing, fully intending to drag the former out of bed and into a spar. Andy felt energized and ready to take on the world this morning and it had been almost a forever since he's had a really good sparring match with… well anyone.

Terry was sprawled across his futon, every limb seemed to be pointing in a different direction and he was snoring so loudly that the younger Bogard brother was amazed he and Mai hadn't heard it from her room… _their_ room. The American ninja smiled evilly, Terry was so fast asleep and enjoying it so much. Andy was going to enjoy this with a small amount of sadistic pleasure…

The blond ninja tiptoed to the opposite side of the room. The wall on that side was actually another sliding door, all the rooms on this side of the house had doors the opened up onto the garden. Andy slid this door open as wide as it would go before tiptoeing back to his slumbering brother. The younger brother seized the older one's shirt and tossed him like a sack of potatoes out the open door into the frost-encrusted garden.

"Rise and shine!" The blond ninja exclaimed.

Rock, being stirred by the disturbance but not fully woken muttered, "Five more minuets, Terry…" before falling back asleep completely.

Andy ignored the teen and stalked toward his prey. He tossed Terry a pair of shoes so that the Lone Wolf wouldn't freeze his feet and then assumed his stance.

"Not cool, Andy." Terry glared at his little brother.

Something had changed between last night and this morning. Andy seemed calmer, more playful almost _happy_. That oppressive cloud of despair that had seemed to be hanging over him since Terry first arrived was dispelled and the blond ninja appeared to be back to his normal self again. Relieved, Terry pulled on the shoes Andy passed him and assumed his stance.

"Actually, I think it's very cool." His brother countered, turning his face into a light breeze that sent frigid air swirling around them.

"Hey, c'mon. Its to early for puns." Terry decided to throw the first punch.

Andy sidestepped the half-hearted blow and sent Terry stumbling towards a slight drift of snow. The Lone Wolf avoided it easily, but his little brother snickered all the same. Seeing Terry stumble was always fun, even if he didn't fall.

"I take it you had a good night last night." The elder Bogard commented as he regained his balance and waited for Andy's next offensive.

The younger brother dropped to a crouch and swung a kick in a wide arc, attempting to knock Terry's feet out from under him. The Lone Wolfe jumped over the kick easily enough.

"As good as could be expected." Andy replied with a slight shrug. He was not in the habit of 'kiss and tell'. Terry did need to know about his intimate encounters with Mai, it was enough that he knew they happened at all. Though he was trying to be more open with his feelings for the spunky red ninja, Andy Bogard was still a helpless prude. His sexual relationship with Mai was really no one else's business.

"I take it you hadn't had a good night like that in a while." Terry continued. He took advantage of Andy's slow recovery from his failed kick to land one solid punch to the ninja's shoulder, causing him to fall backwards on his ass. The first successful offensive move of the match and it had been dealt by Terry, a fact his inferiority complexed younger brother would no doubt take note of.

Andy recovered from the attack, springing back to his feet as if the ground had bounced him back. He took a hold of Terry about the torso and threw him several feet across the garden, one of the more judo-like moves he had learned under the guidance of Yamada Jubei.

"I really don't see how that's any business of yours, Niisan."

And he was back to calling Terry by the affectionate Japanese colloquialism for an older brother. Things really had improved between last night and this morning.

"I think this is a good place to pause." Terry said, getting to his feet. "We're one to one, one hit each, one fall each. I dunno about you, but I could go for some breakfast before we continue."

Andy was just getting warmed up and didn't want to end his first decent spar since deciding to stay at the Shiranui dojo indefinitely so soon. But he also knew that he insisted they continue that Terry would slowly start bitching about the cold, or how early it was, or that he was hungry or whatever else he would think of as an excuse.

"Alright." Andy relaxed his stance and slid Terry's bedroom door back open, slipping off his snow and dirt soaked tabi before stepping inside. Terry followed him, sitting down to pull off his sneakers before reentering the warmth of the Shiranui dojo.

Rock was still lying in bed, but by his posture and breathing it was evident that he was no longer asleep. Andy muttered a polite "G'morning, brat" before leaving the room. The drowsy teen mumbled something in response but Andy was already out of the room by that point.

…

Andy went to rouse Hokutomaru. He gently shook the youth by the shoulder until he awoke.

"Rise and shine, kiddo." The blond ninja said when the boy blinked up at him. "Today we start your training."

"Hai, Andy-san." The boy got up.

"And you don't have to call me '-san' anymore." Andy added. "From now on, call me 'sensei'."

"Hai, Andy-sensei." The boy nodded.

…


End file.
